


New H(a)unts

by BlackHunter666



Category: REILLY Matthew - Works, Scarecrow Series - Matthew Reilly, Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Bounty Hunters on the Move, Changing Perspectives, Gen, M/M, New Galaxy Same Old Work, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Rape/Non-con Elements, Sentient Atlantis, Survival
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-08
Updated: 2016-08-07
Packaged: 2018-07-22 08:25:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 33,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7427491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackHunter666/pseuds/BlackHunter666
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After several failed attempts to hide from all the attention on Earth, Shane, Mother and Buck take on a mission far beyond anything they've ever faced before. Just getting to the transport took six months of briefings, paperwork and security assessments. Now it's just a matter of surviving.</p><p>Still coming back after a rough few months, Aloysius and Rufus aren't quite sure what to make of the curious new job they've been offered. With the Raven out of action and their coffers running a little low, they agree to the job. It should be simple but nothing ever goes quite to plan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Another Adventure

Still trying to wrap his head around everything that had happened in the last six months, Rufus sighed softly as he settled on one of the large crates he'd insisted on bringing along on this wild ride. There had been a few arguments about his luggage but eventually he'd won them over and had been allowed to bring his project along with him. He was just grateful that he'd been able to bring it along, he wasn't sure his sanity would survive having to leave his beloved Raven behind for an undetermined length of time.

Looking up at the largest piece in the room, he sighed again as he let his mind drift back over everything, trying to make sense of it all. He still didn't want to think about that terrifying crash near Prague, he'd come way too close to buying the farm there. Six months and he was still grounded, the Raven in more pieces than he wanted to think about and he was still recovering from the impact. Even Aloysius was still a little tender, even though he'd ejected before they got too low but his landing had left him with broken bones and severe bruising as well.

At least they'd managed to get all the spare parts and tools required to rebuild the Raven before Schofield called them with a special mission. Those discussions had taken weeks of back and forth, including several visits from a group of American scientists and military minds to talk things through face to face before the two Bounty Hunters agreed to join this expedition. Their American guests got a little nervous when he started insisting that he be allowed to bring his precious Raven along so he could repair her in his down time.

The back and forth over the Raven had been brutal, wasting another week before he finally got the green light, so long as he could fit everything into wooden crates for the trip. Getting those crates had blown another two months but he pulled it off and secured most of the pieces into custom built cases. The largest piece proved a problem but he got past that with a heavy metal cradle and a multitude of blankets and straps to keep her secure.

Of course, he didn't tell the Air Force everything that was loaded into the custom crates. He was pretty sure they would have never allowed him to bring the weapons systems onboard this unusual ship of theirs and he wasn't about to risk rebuilding the Raven without her cannon and missiles. He wasn't about to fly an un-defendable aircraft. He wasn't sure how he'd go with getting extra ammunition for her either but that was a problem for after she was back in one piece and ready for action again.

Now here he was, sitting onboard an interstellar ship, the Daedalus, heading for another galaxy beyond the Milky Way with the Raven in pieces and his entire life packed into small transport crates. It was too much to comprehend sometimes, he'd never even dreamed of getting into space, much less in such relatively comfortable conditions. It was hard enough trying to wrap his head around the fact that they had a space ship with its own gravity system. He hadn't even tried to understand how humanity had come up with the technology to leave the Milky Way and head out into deeper space. He had heard mention of Stargates and wormholes, hyperdrives and space capable fighters but most of it didn't stick in his head.

The biggest kick in the guts had come from one Colonel Steven Caldwell, the Commander of the Daedalus. He had made it quite clear that Rufus did not have permission to make any repairs to the raven while it was onboard the Daedalus. Apparently he was concerned about damage to his ship so all Rufus could do to pass the time was read through the manuals and make lists of repairs that needed to be done. He wasn't even allowed to finish cleaning away the dirt, grass and other natural debris still jammed in all sorts of places on many of the parts of his beautiful Raven.

Running one hand through his hair, Rufus stood and approached the broken nose of his darling Raven, reaching up to run his fingers lightly over the twisted and torn metal. He longed to get to work, he was going stir crazy being stuck in here without being able to do something for his Queen of the Skies. This enforced inactivity was killing him, he wanted to work and he honestly wasn't sure if he could survive another two weeks of this before he did something stupid out of sheer desperation to be allowed to do something to help his Raven.

Finding a relatively undamaged panel on her nose, he rested his cheek lightly against the cold metal and closed his eyes, fingers absently stroking circles over the scarred finish. Most people didn't understand his affection for his plane; they passed him off as weird or strange. They didn't understand how anyone could be totally devoted to a lump of aluminium and wiring. To him though, the Raven was more than just a plane. She was his escape from all the torments of his youth, allowing him to fly further and higher than the bullies could ever reach. To him, the mighty Black Raven meant freedom and to see her in pieces tore at his heart.

Relaxing a little as he continued to caress the mangled armour beside him, he sighed softly as he tried to clamp down on his longing to start the repairs. Two weeks, he could survive two weeks so long as he could spend it cataloguing damage and preparing to start work.  
'Hey buddy, you in here?' Aloysius called, rapping lightly on the bulkhead near the door.  
'Yeah, I'm here.' Rufus replied, opening his eyes slowly. 'What's up?'  
'Got someone here who wants to meet you.' Aloysius offered, approaching the shattered jet slowly.

Giving his battered Raven one last caress, Rufus moved away from the wreck and ducked under what was left of her left wing. Straightening slowly, he saw Aloysius waiting a respectful distance away with a short, weedy little man beside him.  
'Scarecrow was asking what happened to the Raven so I gave him a dot point version of it. He wanted me to pass on his apologies and an offer of help if you need it. When I mentioned we went down near Prague, Dr Zelenka here got all excited.' Aloysius explained, indicating the shorter man beside him.  
'You told Scarecrow about this?' Rufus asked, eyes narrowing dangerously. 'Why'd you do that?'  
'I didn't tell him everything. Just that we were severely outgunned and went down in a blaze of glory. He didn't press for more than that.' Aloysius sighed, scratching at his hair quickly.  
'Well, I guess that's okay.' Rufus allowed, turning his gaze to Zelenka and offering out his hand in friendship. 'Rufus McKenzie.'  
'Radek Zelenka.' he nodded, barely even hesitating before shaking hands. 'I do not usually pry into other people's business but when I heard Aloysius mention Prague, I could not help myself. I miss my home so very much.'  
'Ahh, now I get it.' Rufus grinned, looking back over his shoulder. 'I know for a fact we've got a few bits of the Czech Republic still coating my Raven but I'm not allowed to clean it off yet.'  
'Why not?' Aloysius asked, limping closer.  
'Colonel Caldwell said that if he caught me so much as touching up her paintwork onboard his ship, he'd have the whole lot beamed out into hyperspace.' Rufus sighed, turning back to his bird slowly. 'It's killing me to sit and do nothing for her but I don't have much choice.'  
'What? Why?' Aloysius demanded, offended by the implication that they couldn't be trusted.  
'He's worried about damage to the Daedalus apparently.' Rufus shrugged, lightly rubbing at his right hand. 'Not that I can do a lot in these tight confines.'

Motioning for Radek to follow him, Rufus returned to the crumpled nose of his wounded bird and pointed, drawing his attention to the mud and grass smeared along her belly and the leafy twigs poking out through tears in the armour.  
'There's even more caked on the landing gear and the wings. There's even debris jammed in the bomb bay.' he continued, not even trying to hide the sorrow in his voice.  
'You care a great deal for this airplane, ano?' Radek asked, taking in all the damage.  
'Yeah, she's my life. I've put a lot of time and energy into my Raven; she's my escape from a harsh reality.' Rufus nodded, so gentle with the damaged fuselage in case anything else fell off.  
'We all have those special things we adore above all others.' Radek smiled, letting his gaze drift over the mangled plane.

Looking up at Rufus for permission, Radek reached up with one shaking hand and dislodged a small piece from near a deep tear in her belly. Catching it in both hands, he smiled bright as any star as he cradled the tiny piece of home in his hands.  
'Is so hard to find time to go home, always people call on me to fix some problem or another. Even on this trip, I was denied a chance to go back to Prague even for a day. Debriefings, emergency repairs, mission security and then suddenly we must leave again.' he complained, still totally fixated on the dirt in his hands.  
'Well, I'll tell you what. When we get to Atlantis, I'll make sure to gather up every little bit of organic debris on my leading lady and give it to you. Might even try to make it look like a terrarium or something depending on what I find and what sort of container I can get.' Rufus offered, resting his good hand on Radek's shoulder.  
'I would like that, thank you.' Radek nodded, lifting his gaze again.  
'I have no idea what might be crammed in the bomb bay so there's a possibility something might even survive the trip.' Rufus added, amazed that a simple lump of dirt could make Radek so happy.  
'Now that would be a real treat.' Radek agreed, eyes once again drawn to the wrecked plane. 'I do hope you can get your Raven back in the air.'  
'I live in hope, Radek. I'd be lost without my Raven.' Rufus admitted, bowing his head for a moment. 'Sometimes I think she's the only reason I'm still sane.'  
'We will see if you say that after a few months on Atlantis.' Radek chuckled; handing back the model and watching Rufus put it away.

Feeling a lot more secure now that he'd found someone to talk to, Rufus slid to his feet and rolled his shoulders as he looked down at Radek with a grin. It was refreshing to find someone he could talk to so easily, someone who didn't judge him for his eccentricities towards the Raven.  
'I admit, I wasn't paying a lot of attention to all the briefings we were given. I was distracted thinking about other things. I don't suppose you've got the time to explain a few things.' he tried, shoving his hands in his pockets.  
'I would be delighted. Shall we get some lunch and I will answer as many of your questions as I can.' Radek agreed, glancing at his watch quickly.  
'Sounds like a plan to me, Radek. Lead the way.' Rufus nodded, patting his beloved Raven lightly before following Radek from the room.

~^~^~^~^~

Head reeling as he tried to understand everything he'd been told, Shane Schofield wandered into the mess and grabbed a tray. It all sounded so bizarre, aliens sucking the life out of people and giant space ships spreading terror across a galaxy. Just the idea of life on other planets was messing with his mind; the rest of it was just one step to far for this Marine.  
'Hey, figured it out yet?' Mother asked, slotting in behind him.  
'Not even close.' Shane replied, looking up at her. 'I'm still stuck on life on other planets.'  
'That's better than Buck. He's still stuck with aliens sucking the life outta people thing.' she grinned, looking at the meal on her tray. 'I still can't believe we're on a space ship.'  
'Mother, I get the feeling that we're going to be really confused for a while yet.' Shane sighed, looking around the mess again. 'Come on, at least the food looks normal.'  
'Yeah but the coffee tastes like shit.' Buck added, waving them towards his table.  
'Buck, name me a military that actually has good coffee for the grunts.' Rufus countered, settled at another table with someone Shane didn't recognise.  
'He's got a point there Buck, just drink it and try not to taste it.' Aloysius added, moving past them and dropping down beside Rufus.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Shane wandered over and sat near the occupied table, listening to the conversation with growing interest. He didn't really understand most of it; he simply didn't have the scientific brain required.  
'Tell me of Atlantis.' the smaller man suggested, leaning forward in his chair.  
'The city of Atlantis was built by a race of people known simply as the Ancients but no one knows exactly when it was built. You estimate six million years but it could be much older. All you know for certain is that it was abandoned 10 thousand years ago and remained hidden under an ocean until the expedition from earth discovered it a couple of years back.' Rufus nodded, sipping his coffee slowly.  
'Ano, you are correct so far.' the smaller man replied, pushing his glasses up his nose. 'Stargates.'  
'Atlantis is connected to the Stargate network, allowing nearly instantaneous travel from the city to any one of hundreds of planets in the Pegasus galaxy. The Stargates use wormholes to make these connections and allow for people and materials to pass from planet to planet.' Rufus continued, the sheer impossibility of it sending Shane's head spinning again.  
'Very good Rufus. Now Puddlejumpers.'  
'Puddlejumpers are small Ancient built ships, capable of atmospheric and space flight. They are also capable of oceanic explorations but it is not advised due to risks of mechanical or technological failure. Each comes equipped with a cloak and a weapons system, optimised to fire ATA controlled drones to destroy enemies. The Jumpers do not use the familiar electrical systems; instead they are based on a power crystal system.' Rufus recited; a fond little grin on his face as he ran through his knowledge on these new concepts.  
'Ano, velmi dobre!' the other man applauded happily, extremely pleased with what Rufus was saying so far. 'ATA Gene.'  
'The Ancient Technology Activation Gene, discovered by Dr Carson Beckett. The ATA gene is a specific gene expression present within the DNA of the Ancients that was used as a sort of genetic key so only their kind can operate their technology. This gene allows those who have it to operate Ancient technology by thought alone.' Rufus grinned, draining his mug and setting it aside.

Shaking his head in wonder at what he was hearing, Shane gave up on trying to understand what was being said as he finished his late lunch and settled back to see what else Rufus had learned over the last few days. Honestly, it was completely outside his understanding of the world and he wasn't sure if he'd made the right choice in coming on this mission.  
'Radek, meet Captain Shane Schofield, Gunnery Sergeant Gena Newman and Staff Sergeant Buck Riley.' Rufus offered, his smile genuine and soft as he spoke. 'Guys, this is Dr Radek Zelenka, one of the scientists working on Atlantis.'  
'A pleasure to meet you all.' Radek nodded, bright eyes flicking over them as he offered his hand.  
'Likewise, Dr Zelenka.' Shane grinned, accepting his hand warmly.  
'Has anyone seen Mr Rufus McKenzie?' another voice asked, heavy with a Scottish brogue.  
'Aye, over here.' Rufus replied, turning to look at the speaker.

Twisting and uncurling from the uncomfortable chair, Rufus stood and turned, careful not to crack his head on the beams across the ceiling of the mess. Smiling softly, he approached the man still standing in the doorway, a tablet in one hand and a stunned look on his face.  
'I'm Rufus McKenzie.' he confirmed, offering out his hand. 'What can I do for you?'  
'I'm Carson Beckett, CMO fer the Atlantis expedition.' the other man replied, clasping Rufus' hand firmly. 'Fer a moment, I thought I was back in the highlands.'  
'Not quite, Carson. I'm Irish born.' Rufus chuckled, moving to the side.  
'I see. I wanted ta talk ta ye about yer recent blood tests.' Carson nodded, looking up at Rufus with a grin. 'We can talk about it in my office. It's nothin' bad, promise.'  
'If you don't mind, I'd rather talk about it here. If it's nothin' serious, there's no reason to hide away to talk about it.' Rufus shrugged, heading back to his table. 'Unless you have a real problem with that.'  
'Nae, it's alright with me lad.' Carson agreed, following him through the mess and settling beside Radek as he looked at Aloysius and the Marines around him. 'I do nae believe we've met.'  
'Aloysius Knight, at your service. That's Shane, Gena and Buck, Marines to the core.' Aloysius chuckled, offering out his hand. 'And you are?'  
'Carson Beckett, CMO fer the Atlantis team.' he replied, shaking Aloysius' hand in greeting.  
'So what was it you wanted to talk about?' Rufus asked, propping his elbows on the table.  
'He already has good understanding of the ATA gene, Carson.' Radek added, draining his mug and setting it aside.  
'Right, well tha' makes it easier.' Carson nodded, setting his tablet on the table. 'We test all new members of the expedition for the ATA gene. I ran your test twice, just to be sure of the result. It would appear that you're now the strongest ATA carrier on Atlantis.'  
'I'm what?' Rufus blinked, shaking his head quickly. 'I thought Colonel Sheppard was the strongest gene carrier on Atlantis.'  
'Aye, he was. The results don't lie, lad. According to this, yer twice as strong as he is.' Carson corrected, sliding his tablet across the table. 'Captain Schofield, ye also tested positive but yer nowhere near as strong with it.'

Looking at the graphs and figures on the screen, Rufus scratched his head slowly as he tried to understand what was being shown to him. He didn't understand a lot of the medical jargon on the screen but he did understand the list of names and numbers down the bottom of the screen.  
'If I'm reading this right, Captain Schofield's numbers put him somewhere between you and a Dr McKay.' he nodded, eyebrows shooting up at his own numbers. 'Whoa, now that's a huge jump.'  
'Oh, Rodney will not like this.' Radek warned, attention flicking to Shane. 'Now he will be even more insufferable.'  
'Double and a half over Sheppard…what exactly does that mean for me, Carson?' Rufus asked, sliding the tablet back across the table.  
'Well, the higher the number, the easier it is for a person to use Ancient technology. I really have to concentrate on it, Colonel Sheppard finds it remarkably easy to make it work for him and so ye should find it extremely simple to make any Ancient device for ye.' Carson explained, offering out his tablet to Shane. 'I suspect that you will have some difficulties with the technology, Captain.'  
'What about the rest of us?' Buck asked, lifting his gaze slowly.  
'We have a gene therapy program that might work for ye. It's only effective in about 47% of people but we can try.' Carson offered, glancing at Radek. 'Unfortunately there's no way to tell who it might work for. It's just a matter of trial and error.'  
'Great, reduced to a cosmic guinea pig.' Aloysius groaned, slipping his glasses off and slamming his head into the table.  
'Enough with the dramatics, Aloysius.' Rufus sighed, dragging him back upright. 'Might be a smart idea to brief Dr Beckett on your ARD. You never know what might come of it.'  
'Do I have to? Feels like I go over this every damn month.' Aloysius sighed, tossing his glasses onto the table and rubbing at his eyes.  
'Hey, with all this new technology Dr Beckett might actually be able to fix the problem instead of doing nothing.' Rufus retorted, pinching the bridge of his nose. 'If you won't, I will. I can't always be there if you snap your glasses again.'  
'Fine.' Aloysius grumbled, sitting up and fumbling for his glasses until Carson nudged them into his searching hand.

Sliding his glasses back on and folding his arms on the table, Aloysius sighed heavily as he looked around the group. He hated talking about this, going over it time and time again with every move they made to avoid their competitors.  
'Okay, dot point briefing. I have the world's rarest eye condition. Acute Retinal Dystrophy. I wear the glasses because my eyes can't handle direct exposure to light. Exposure results in extreme pain. Under no circumstances attempt to use a pen light to determine if I have a concussion. Such actions will result in physical harm to whoever tries it. At present, there is no cure for the condition and it is getting worse. At some point, it will get to a point that I will lose all vision. To date, no one has calculated when that will occur. My brother went blind in his teens, my father lost his when he turned 52. I am now 34 and still waiting for it to happen.' Aloysius recited, meeting Carson's gaze calmly as he put everything on the table.  
'Take that warning very seriously Carson. The last doctor who shone a light into his unprotected eyes was in a coma for six months and unable to return to medicine. He suffered some pretty severe brain damage.' Rufus warned, resting one hand on Aloysius' back lightly.  
'Oh…well…thank ye fer letting me know.' Carson nodded, more than a little intimidated. 'I cannae say I've ever heard of this Acute Retinal Dystrophy either.'  
'Oh great, back to square one again.' Aloysius groaned, resiting the temptation to smack his head on the table again. 'I have printed copies of everything I know about the condition but I can't get at them currently.'  
'Yes you can, I managed to empty the flame-proof cabinet before I wrapped the Raven for transport. All the paperwork is in the crate with the manuals.' Rufus corrected, fingers tightening in Aloysius' shirt to stop him doing anything crazy. 'I suggest you go get them so Dr Beckett can read up on your condition.'

Getting to his feet slowly, Aloysius turned and limped away slowly. The last six months were telling on him hard, Rufus privately doubted that he would ever be back to his best after that ugly crash. Honestly, he would be surprised if either of them ever regained that level of fitness again.  
'He'll come find you when he's a little more comfortable with discussing it, Carson. He hates having to go over his situation every time we move to a new place. Don't push him, he's not used to having a big support network.' Rufus uttered, turning his attention back to the rest of the group. 'We're so used to being on our own that it's hard to admit we need help.'  
'Anything else I should know about?' Carson asked, busily making notes on his tablet regarding what had already been said.  
'Uhh, where do I even start?' Rufus shrugged, rubbing lightly at the multitude of scars over his knuckles. 'We've got more than a few old injuries.'  
'Start with the most recent.' Carson guided, looking up from his tablet.  
'We were involved in a pretty serious crash six months ago. Our fighter was shot down over the Czech Republic. Aloysius bailed out but suffered broken bones and internal injuries when he eventually hit the ground. He broke his left leg in seven places, hence the limp. I stayed with the plane until the end, doing my best to avoid the few scattered buildings around us. Broke a few bones, did some internal damage and gave myself a nasty concussion but at least we didn't kill anyone.' Rufus offered, brushing his sleeve up to reveal the fresh surgical scars running down his right forearm. 'Broke my right arm in five places and my left in six.'  
'Good god man, how can ye be so callous about all this?' Carson asked, eyes wide in disbelief.  
'In our line of work, injuries are common place. I've been shot, stabbed and blown up more times than I'd care to think about. This latest crash makes six times I've been shot down and walked away from it. Been involved in a few car wrecks too.' Rufus continued, figuring it was smart to put everything on the table.  
'How are you even still alive?' Shane asked, stunned by what he was hearing.  
'My thoughts exactly.' Carson agreed, stunned by the casual way Rufus spoke of this.  
'Scarecrow, you've seen us in action. Is it really that surprising that we're covered in scars?' Rufus chuckled, tipping his head to the side and pulling his collar away to reveal a faint scar on the side of his neck. 'That was a dog attack.'  
'When we get ta Atlantis, I want to see ye both in the infirmary. I need to get a full catalogue of all yer previous injuries.' Carson insisted, adding dog attack to the list on his tablet.  
'Yeah, that's fair enough.' Rufus agreed, shifting and startling everyone with the rather loud pop-crack his back gave. 'Oh yeah, my back does that a lot. Hazard of being a pilot and having to eject more than a few times.'  
'Here I thought you were smart man.' Radek remarked, shaking his head in wonder.  
'I am a smart man, it's not my fault that people want to see me dead. It's all part of the job.' Rufus countered, tapping at the second tablet on the table. 'After all, in just a few hours I've learned what it took you two years to understand.'  
'Now be fair lad, we had to learn on the fly. Ye got the advantage of learning it second hand.' Carson chastised, glancing at the tablet in front of Radek.  
'My point stands. The fact people try to kill me on a daily basis has nothing to do with my intelligence.' Rufus shrugged, popping his back again as he stood. 'I'm pretty sure I put our last medical files in with the rest of the paperwork before we left. I'll see if in can dig them out for you to read, Dr Beckett.'  
'aye, tha' would be helpful Rufus.' Carson nodded, scrawling something else on his tablet.  
'I need some time to myself. I hope we can continue the lessons later Radek.' he continued, leaning lightly on the back of his chair for the moment.  
'Of course, whenever you feel ready.' Radek agreed, adjusting his glasses.  
'Thank you, I'll let you know when I'm ready for more.' Rufus grinned, straightening and leaving the mess at a fast walk.

~^~^~^~^~

Definitely a little concerned that Rufus wasn't handling the changes, Shane wasn't all that surprised to find the brilliant pilot settled on a stool in the shadow of his broken Raven. What was a surprise was finding him with an old guitar in his hands, strumming out an unrecognisable tune as he sat there quietly.  
'Shh, don't wake him.' Rufus uttered, drawing Shane's attention to another figure sleeping between two of the crates. 'He only just went down.'  
'You okay?' Shane asked, crouching beside Rufus and looking over towards Aloysius. 'Both of you.'  
'We will be, Scarecrow. We're just feeling the strain of being stuck in here for days on end.' Rufus nodded, carefully returning his guitar to the case on his other side. 'Doesn't help that I can't do anything useful to pass the time.'  
'Surely you can at least make preparations.' Shane tried, looking around at the crates of parts against the walls.  
'I've already done that. The wiring harnesses are finished, the new fuel lines are waiting to be installed and the hydraulic lines are ready to go as well. I've reorganised my tools twice, recalibrated my welding heads and read through the manuals four times.' Rufus shrugged, resting his elbows on his knees. 'I even reworked the new radar, setting it up to work with our other tricks.'  
'Checked the landing gear?' Shane queried, not quite sure if Rufus had them up or down when he crashed the Raven.  
'All gone, gotta replace the lot when we get to Atlantis.' Rufus shrugged, pointing to another crate.  
'Is there anything left intact?'  
'Yeah, she's still got her tail intact. Aside from that, she's a wreck. I'll know more when I've had a chance to strip off the rest of her armour so I can investigate the frame underneath.' Rufus snorted, shaking his head sadly. 'I'm going out of my head from boredom. Caldwell's got this leash so tight it's choking me and honestly, I don't know if I'll survive another two weeks of this.'  
'Hang in there Rufus. I'll talk to Colonel Caldwell in the morning, see if I can't coax him to relax his grip a little. Failing that, we'll figure out a few ways to keep you entertained for the rest of the trip.' Shane offered, reaching up to curl one hand over Rufus' shoulder. 'That work for you?'  
'Yeah, thank Scarecrow.' Rufus nodded, a soft smile touching his lips. 'Shoulda known that you'd be watching over us again.'  
'This is a strange new place, we need to stick together.' Shane grinned, getting to his feet slowly and looking towards Aloysius again. 'Try and get some sleep, I'll start on Caldwell in the morning. Goodnight Rufus.'  
'Sleep well Shane.' Rufus replied, getting up and heading towards a sleeping bag unrolled beside two of the largest crates in the room.

Sinking down and pulling off his boots, Rufus stretched out and tugged the blankets over him as he gazed up at his beloved Raven again. He wasn't really expecting much from Caldwell, he seemed determined to make life hell for them all. All he could do was ride out the storm and prepare for the jobs at hand once they arrived on Atlantis. Eyes sliding closed, he surrendered to his need for sleep and dreamed of once again taking to the skies with his beautiful Raven.


	2. New City, Same Old Work

Getting their first look at Atlantis, the five friends could only stand and stare in disbelief as the Daedalus headed closer to the city in preparation to land. Even from this distance, the city looked absolutely huge, gleaming spires stretching high into the sky as it floated so peacefully on the vast ocean. No one dared to speak, totally wrapped up in the sheer majesty of the great city.  
'Rufus, do you have a moment?' Radek requested, approaching the stunned group.  
'Huh?' Rufus blinked, struggling to tear his gaze away from the city below. 'Oh, hey Radek. What do you need?'  
'Have you decided where you will put your project?' Radek asked, glancing towards the city.  
'Honestly, I'd totally forgotten about that. I've been a little busy getting up to speed.' Rufus sighed, running one hand through his hair. 'I need a room roughly 90 feet long, 80 wide and at least 25 high.'  
'Big project.' Radek remarked, turning his attention to his tablet. 'I do not know if we have any such spaces available anymore.'  
'I could go a little smaller but the more room to work the better.' Rufus offered; peering at the map Radek was investigating.

It took a few minutes but finally Radek tapped at a large open area in one of the outer areas on the map. The display changed almost instantly, bringing up a closer view of the room and a list of dimensions in a small box off to the side.  
'Will this suit? Is larger than requested.' Radek asked, holding out the tablet in invitation.  
'120 long, 100 wide and 40 high…yeah that'll work just fine.' Rufus nodded, scanning the rest of the details on the screen. 'Not quite sure how we'll get her in there…'  
'Do not worry, my friend. We will get her in there the same way we got her out of Prague.' Radek laughed, tapping at the radio in his ear. 'Hermiod is Dr Zelenka. Kindly beam Rufus' project to the transmitted coordinates.'  
"Is Rufus aware of this plan, Dr Zelenka?"  
'Here, you talk to him.' Radek sighed, plucking his radio off and handing it over.  
'You have my permission, Hermiod.' Rufus grinned, slipping the radio over his ear securely.  
"Beaming now." Hermiod responded. "Shall I send your personal belongings as well?"  
'No, I'll take care of those Hermiod. Thank you.' Rufus chuckled, bending down a little to better hear what was said.  
"Very well…beaming completed. Your project is safe in your new workshop."  
'Many thanks Hermiod.' Rufus nodded, handing the radio back and returning to Aloysius' side.

They barely even felt it when the Daedalus touched down on one of the piers, their view totally filled with the towering spires of the ancient city. For long moments they just stood there and stared, varied looks of awe, disbelief, wonder and shock on their faces as they tried to accept the strange new reality they were stepping into.  
'This is totally fuckin' insane.' Mother uttered, shaking her head slowly.  
'Come on, there's nothing to be gained by staring at it.' Shane guided, stepping back and turning away from the view. 'Grab your gear and we'll meet back at the boarding ramp.'  
'Actually, we'll catch up with you three a little later. We were told to report to a Dr Weir as soon as we landed.' Aloysius corrected, nudging Rufus sharply. 'Come on buddy, time to get to work.'  
'I can take you to Dr Weir's office.' Radek offered, looking up at them again. 'After that I will have to get back to work but I will see you around, yes.'  
'Of course.' Rufus nodded, reluctantly turning away from the vista and heading to collect his personal possessions.

Coming back with two big rolling suitcases, two duffels and a guitar case strapped to his back, Rufus just grinned as they waited for Aloysius to come back with an equally impressive luggage collection. The only real different was that he had a large backpack instead of a guitar case.  
'Lead the way Radek.' Aloysius nodded, heading down the ramp and looking up in wonder again.  
'This place is incredible.' Rufus remarked, subconsciously shortening his stride for Radek's sake.  
'Wait until you see inside.' Radek grinned, adjusting the pack digging into his shoulder and leading them along the pier. 'This place is truly beautiful inside and out.'  
'Is it just me or is the city moving?' Aloysius asked, turning his focus back to Radek again.  
'The city moves with the wind and waves.' Radek nodded, inhaling the salt air around them. 'Most find it restful to fall asleep to the gentle rock of the waves.'  
'I can understand that.' Rufus chuckled, breathing deep and closing his eyes for a moment. 'I can breathe again. That recycled air left a bad taste in my throat.'  
'Ano, I know the feeling.' Radek grinned, leading them into one of the many buildings rising up from the pier. 'This way, we use transporter to get to the centre. Takes too long to walk.'  
'Transporter?' Aloysius questioned, lugging his belongings into the small room Radek had entered.  
'Ano, they allow for almost instant transfers from place to place around the city.' Radek explained, making space for Rufus to join them before tapping at one of the dots on the map behind them.

Jaws dropped again as the doors opened and they were surrounded by people bustling around in every direction. Some wore khakis and blue shirts like Radek, others went around in military uniforms and a few wore something different. The two Bounty Hunters blended right in with everyone around them; Aloysius back in his favourite blacks and Rufus in his cleanest flight suit, the sleeves knotted firmly around his waist to reveal the crisp grey tee underneath.  
'You can leave your bags here, they will be quite safe.' Radek suggested, pausing at the base of a short flight of stairs.  
'If it's all the same, we'd rather keep them close to hand.' Aloysius shrugged, shifting his grip and carrying his gear up the stairs.  
'It's nothing personal Radek.' Rufus assured, carrying his gear up and looking around in wonder.

Following Radek through the corridors, the two Bounty Hunters were in total awe of this place, gazes drifting around to admire the simple architecture and all the people that called this incredible city home. Of all the beautiful cities they had visited, nothing quite compared to Atlantis.  
'Ah, forgive me but I must get back to work. Rodney is shrieking for attention again. Just follow this hall; Dr Weir's office is at the end.' Radek sighed, tapping his radio again. 'I will be there shortly Rodney.'  
'We'll catch up later Radek.' Rufus nodded, resting one hand on Radek's shoulder lightly. 'Go on, before he gets even worse.'  
'Perhaps I will see you at evening meal.' Radek smiled; turning and hurrying away.

Finding their way with relative ease, Aloysius settled his gear against the wall and reached out to knock lightly against the wall as he stepped into the room.  
'Dr Weir?' he asked, smiling softly at the woman behind the desk as she nodded. 'I am Aloysius Knight and this is my associate Rufus McKenzie.'  
'Ah, of course. Please, come in. I am Dr Elizabeth Weir.' she nodded, indicating the chairs in front of her desk. 'Have a seat gentlemen. We have much to discuss.'  
'Obviously you know of our reputation, you wouldn't have called for us otherwise. So what's the problem and how can we be of help?' Aloysius opened, settling quickly and trying to relax.  
'Straight down to business I see.' Dr Weir smiled, taking a seat and leaning forward.  
'Yeah, well after three weeks doing nothing, we're itching to get busy.' Rufus shrugged, thankful his back was quiet as he settled into the other chair.  
'Alright then, here's what I know so far.' Elizabeth nodded, looking around quickly. 'About a year ago, we noticed a strange drop in morale among the scientists here. There was no indication of trouble, but suddenly the scientists were far quieter and displayed extreme reluctance to go anywhere on their own. At first it was easy to ignore but ever since I first noticed the problem, it's only gotten worse. Now it's a battle just to get the scientists to wander in pairs and their work is clearly suffering.'  
'So far I'm not seeing how we can help with this problem.' Aloysius sighed, dreading another long trip back to earth so soon after their arrival.  
'I suspect that one or several of the Marines stationed here might be causing the problems. I have no proof for this, just a bad feeling about some of them. I have some of the minor injuries being left on some of the scientists, Carson felt it was important I know that something was wrong. Mostly it's fists and feet but some of the bruises are unusual.' Elizabeth continued, holding out a tablet for them to look at.

Flicking through the photos on the screen, Aloysius frowned as he started putting the pieces together. Some of the bruises were clearly fist shaped, others very clearly boots and some were unusually shaped. Long rectangles, blurry circles, some were even triangular in shape.  
'Some of these are definitely bite marks. These long ones…could be a belt or something similar. Not sure about these triangular ones though, never seen anything like that before.' Rufus noted, still looking through the photos.  
'Can you help us?' Elizabeth asked, watching the pair closely.  
'So we catch whoever is doing this, what then?' Aloysius questioned, turning his gaze back to Elizabeth. 'Do we bring him to you or would you prefer to know simply that the perpetrators have been dealt with in the usual fashion?'  
'What would be the usual fashion?' Elizabeth queried; a hint of caution in her eyes.  
'Execution and body dump.' Rufus replied, straight to the point as always. 'Most employers are content to see proof of death, not the actual job.'  
'I had considered that and honestly, I think that is the best option. We cannot keep whoever is doing this here is Atlantis, we can't send them back to Earth in case they talk about Atlantis and we can't release them into the Pegasus galaxy in case the Wraith capture them and learn our secrets.' Elizabeth sighed, settling back in her chair. 'What is the normal proof of death?'  
'Depends on the employer. Some will accept photos and video of the kill; others will accept jewellery along with photos. In rare cases, we've had to take a body part back to be verified before we got paid.' Aloysius explained, sliding the tablet across the desk. 'Usually it's the head but it depends entirely on the employer.'  
'Photos will be sufficient. If they turn out to be military, bring back their dogtags too.' Elizabeth instructed, looking a little green at the thought of body parts.  
'As you wish, Dr Weir.' Aloysius nodded, jotting down the details on the pad strapped inside his left forearm. 'Now, as part of the job we will be carrying firearms and other weaponry at all times. Not only for our own protection but ready for whenever we catch the people doing this.'  
'I will inform Colonel Sheppard to leave you in peace with your weaponry.' Elizabeth promised, shutting off the tablet and pushing it aside.  
'It would be beneficial if we had access to the comm network in the city. I have no doubt that you have kept our true purpose for being here a secret so radios and other borrowed equipment would help sell a cover story.' Rufus suggested, glancing over to check on his gear. 'Aloysius will keep an eye on the military side and I will work among the scientists.'  
'Are you sure about that Rufus? Rodney, Dr McKay, can be quite…aggressive with new hires.' Elizabeth smiled, getting up and retrieving two radios and a spare tablet from a drawer built into the wall.  
'I wouldn't worry about it, Ma'am. He might just have met his match with me; I'm a certified genius too.' Rufus winked, accepting his radio and tablet. 'He might intimidate others but I'm not so easy to spook.'

Settling his radio into place, Aloysius reached inside his shirt and pulled out a spare pair of glasses, toying with them for a moment before sliding them across the table.  
'I ask that you keep those somewhere easy to access. I have a rare eye condition that makes my eyes highly sensitive to light. The glasses are the only way I can go about daily life. We will be scattering pairs all around the city so should I break a pair, there will be another pair close at hand at all times.' Aloysius explained, readjusting his current pair quickly.  
'Of course, I'll leave them right here on my desk should they be needed.' Elizabeth smiled, putting them right beside her computer screen.  
'Thank you.' Aloysius replied, leaning back in his seat. 'Most of the contract arrangements have already been taken care of so it's just a matter of dealing with the problem and reporting success.'  
'On a side note, I have a project I will be working on during this job. I may need to borrow some members of your staff to assist from time to time but I will do my best to limit the disruptions.' Rufus added, tapping at his tablet quickly before handing it across.

Elizabeth's eyebrows shot up as she took in the collection of crates and the large covered item in the middle of the room shown on the screen. She wasn't quite sure what to make of it but if Colonel Caldwell had allowed it on the Daedalus, it couldn't be too bad. For now she kept her curiosity restrained, she would wait until a better time to ask for details.  
'So long as this project will not distract you from getting the job done.' she nodded, handing the tablet back.  
'Of course not, Ma'am. We'll get the job done, no matter what.' Rufus promised, shutting off the tablet and resting it in his lap. 'Who knows, might even help solve the problems sooner. Most of what I'll need is technical skill. Dr Zelenka has seen parts of the project, so he'll likely be my first port of call when I need some help.'  
'I have no doubt he would be grateful for the chance to escape Rodney. I see no problem with your plan so long as you are willing to help Radek if he ever requires it.' Elizabeth agreed; her posture much more relaxed now.  
'Count on it, Ma'am.' Rufus nodded, watching the surprise on her face at the repeated use of the polite address. 'My mother raised a gentleman but life turned me wrong.'  
'Quarters have been arranged for you, however due to the natural separation between military and civilian that has happened; you are in different sections of the city.' Elizabeth continued; getting to her feet as another man entered the office. 'Ah John, perfect timing. These are the two men Mr Woolsley arranged to help us. Gentlemen, this is Lieutenant-Colonel John Sheppard, head of the military side of Atlantis.'  
'Captain Aloysius Knight.' Aloysius nodded, getting up and offering his hand.  
'Rufus McKenzie.' Rufus grinned, also getting to his feet and offering his hand.  
'Welcome to Atlantis. I hope you can put an end to our problems.' John grinned, shaking their hands warmly.  
'We'll do our best.' Aloysius shrugged, tucking his thumbs through his belt. 'Not sure how much you know about why we're here but the key thing you need to know is that we will be armed at all times. Handguns and knives mostly but if the threat level rises, expect shotguns and heavy rifles to come out.'  
'I know exactly why you're here.' John countered, glancing at Elizabeth. 'I'm not totally comfortable with you two wandering around armed but if that's what it takes to get this sorted, I'll allow it.'  
'Colonel, a little tip. If you want Atlantis to remain intact, never, ever put Captains Knight and Schofield on a team together. They have a terrible habit of destroying things.' Rufus smirked, heading over to pick up his guitar again.  
'I'll take that under consideration Rufus.' John nodded, eyeing the guitar curiously. 'Any particular style you play?'  
'Some modern country, a little soft rock if the mood strikes.' Rufus shrugged, settling the guitar securely on his back. 'Mostly it's whatever's in my heart.'  
'John, if you have the time could you show these two to their quarters?' Elizabeth asked, changing the topic as if she knew Rufus was uncomfortable talking about his music.  
'Yeah sure. Where are they going?' John shrugged, looking at the map on the wall of her office. 'No problem, follow me guys.'

~^~^~^~^~

Feeling more than a little exposed as he sat there in his boxers and glasses, Shane tolerated all the poking and prodding from Carson and diligently answered all his questions about all his scars and the various broken bones that came up on the scanners. Buck had already gone through this and Mother sat quietly, waiting for her turn to reveal a lifetime of injuries. Carson spoke quietly to them all, making notes and demonstrating such patience whenever they paused at a memory. After some thought, Shane figured it was safe to mention some of the top secret incidents they'd been involved with, considering the classified aspect of their new mission.

Waiting for Carson to finish making notes about the burns on his chest, Shane sighed softly as he bowed his head. Fuck, he hated talking about this but Carson had asked to see all their old injuries so he could finish their medical files before they were cleared for duty.  
'Anything else I should know about, lad?' Carson asked, turning back to him.  
'Just one more…this isn't easy to talk about.' Shane nodded, slipping his glasses off and lifting his head to reveal the scars bisecting his eyes.  
'What happened?' Carson queried, gently tipping Shane's head up a little more so he could get a proper look at the scars.  
'I was shot down and captured in Bosnia, fifteen years ago. They decided I was a spy and tried to blind me as punishment. A Marine team came in and rescued me, got me back to America and into the hands of the best micro surgeons around. I don't know all the details but they were able to restore my vision.' Shane explained, letting Carson look his fill at the ugly scars. 'Lost my wings because of it but I got back on my feet eventually.'  
'We'll have ta see what Colonel Sheppard says but we might just be able ta get ye flying again.' Carson offered, examining the scars closely.  
'What I'll say about what Carson?' another voice asked, startling Shane with the proximity.  
'Ah, Colonel. Captain Schofield was just telling me that the Marines clipped his wings after an injury. He has the gene so he could potentially fly a Jumper.' Carson explained, removing his hands and stepping away.  
'So long as his vision is fine, I don't see a problem with that.' Sheppard agreed; voice relaxed and calm as footsteps came closer. 'Your vision is fine, isn't it Captain?'  
'Yes Sir, perfect 20/20. My eye doctor was extremely good at his job.' Shane nodded, opening his eyes slowly. 'I was incredibly lucky, I know that.'  
'We'll see how you do with the Jumpers. They're like nothing you've ever flown before.' Sheppard suggested, resting one hand on Shane's shoulder. 'And drop that Sir stuff. Either Colonel or John will do.'  
'Understood John.' Shane grinned, slipping his glasses back on. 'Shane M. Schofield, callsign Scarecrow. That's Sergeant Buck Riley Jr, callsign Book II. Behind me is Gunnery Sergeant Gena Newman, callsign Mother.'  
'I read your files, Scarecrow. I know everything the Marines thought relevant.' Sheppard grinned, handing him his shirt. 'I've also been warned to keep you and Captain Knight separated.'  
'Probably a wise move, John. Things tend to get out of hand whenever we work together. That said, if you ever need something destroyed completely with no trace, we're your men.' Shane laughed, tugging on his shirt and straightening his glasses. 'We're good at that.'  
'Understatement of the century there.' Rufus chuckled, settling on a bed on the other side of the room. 'Come on, you killed an aircraft carrier with one grenade.'  
'You did what?' John asked, jaw dropping at the implication of that statement.  
'Uh, yeah. We killed an aircraft carrier with an RPG.' Shane nodded, running one hand through his hair nervously. 'Was quite an impressive explosion.'

Deciding that he didn't want to know anything more about Schofield's explosive tendencies, Carson squared his shoulders and turned his attention to the third Marine before him. He'd been putting this off, deep down he was intimidated by the heavyset woman sitting on the bed in just a sports bra and shorts, a blanket draped over her legs. She was huge and clearly a dangerous woman when provoked. There was no putting it off any longer though.  
'Mother, quit intimidating the good doctor.' Aloysius called, looking up from the slightly ratty cardboard box he was toying with.  
'I'm tryin' not to.' she replied, running one hand over her bald head. 'It's not my fault I'm a scary motherfucker.'  
'Hey, mind your language.' Sheppard barked, instantly on the defensive.  
'It's alright Colonel, I've heard it all before.' Carson shrugged, approaching her bedside. 'Now where shall we start, Gena?'  
'Might as well get the biggest one out of the way first.' she sighed, sitting up and pulling the blanket off her legs.

Carson's jaw dropped at the sight of her prosthetic leg, all shining silver and engraved with various symbols. Some he recognised, like the Marine EGA and the rank insignia but others were not so obvious. He didn't understand the significance of the bulldog on the shin or the interlocked rings just below the knee.  
'We were doing a mission in Antarctica. Ended up in the water at the bottom of a research station. A fucking killer whale grabbed my legs and dragged me under. Got in a crazy ass tug of war for my body. Ended up getting my right leg free and shot the whale in the head with my pistol. Killed it but that fucking fish took my leg.' she explained, her voice bitter as she remembered.  
'You'll get used to her rather…unique way of reporting.' Shane laughed, pulling on his pants and settling back on the bed. 'That's pretty much the dot point of what happened.'  
'I see.' Carson nodded, taking a closer look at the highly complex prosthetic. 'I have never seen one like this before.'  
'It was custom made so I could stay with my team. Takes a special sort to stick with the Scarecrow.' Mother shrugged, sinking back and letting Carson look his fill. 'I still reckon he made sure I got the special treatment.'  
'I was a little busy writing letters and dealing with debriefings.' Shane corrected, settling in for a long wait.  
'Whatever you do, don't let Radek see that. He'll want to take it apart to see how it works.' Rufus chuckled, getting comfortable on his bed.  
'Fuck off with that idea.' Mother growled, propping up on her elbows again. 'Don't need anyone tinkering with my leg.'  
'Rufus, stop winding her up.' Aloysius sighed, shaking his head slowly. 'I would have thought you'd be in a hurry to get this done so you can go check on the Raven before duty.'  
'I've already done a visual inspection, everything is fine.' Rufus grinned, patting the tablet hanging over his shoulder. 'She'll be there waiting when I get off shift.'  
'Raven? You got permission to bring a bird to Atlantis?' Carson blanched, looking up from his examination quickly.  
'Not the sort with feathers, Carson. I got permission to bring the mangled pieces of my personal plane with me so I can repair her in my downtime.' Rufus chuckled, noting the gleam of interest in Sheppard's eyes. 'We'll talk shop later, Sheppard. I get a feeling you're gonna love my Sukhoi.'  
'A Sukhoi? Now what's a good ol' American boy like you doing flying a Russian jet?' Sheppard asked, one eyebrow slanting up sharply.  
'What sort of idiot argues about the nationality of a jet when they're getting it for free?' Rufus smirked, crossing his legs and setting his tablet in his lap. 'Carson got a question regarding this ATA gene stuff.'  
'Go ahead, lad.' Carson nodded, busily making notes on Mother's general condition.  
'Has anyone ever mentioned the city attempting to communicate with them? Not just sounds but visual cues as well.' Rufus enquired, looking up from his tablet.

For a few moments there was silence, all eyes turned towards Rufus as he sat there, idly tapping away on his tablet as though such a question was a daily occurrence to him. Then Sheppard started spluttering and Carson looked up at the ceiling as if the answer was there.  
'Can ye elaborate at all, lad?' he asked, turning his gaze back to Mother.  
'It's hard to explain. From the moment I got here, I felt like I'd been here before. I automatically knew where the key areas were and how to get to them. Accepting the escort was mostly out of self preservation until I understood more about this place. Upon leaving Weir's office, I instinctively knew where to find my quarters, the mess, infirmary, labs and my personal workshop.' Rufus shrugged, a smile crossing his face. 'She's singing right now, can't you hear it?'  
'I can hear it. She's…happy about the new arrivals.' Sheppard nodded, tipping his head to the side for a moment. 'It's not always so easy to put words to her soft music.'  
'Ye never mentioned this before, Colonel.' Carson remarked, finishing Mother's evaluation. 'Ye're a picture of health Gena.'  
'Figured I was the only one who could hear her and didn't want to be marked insane.' Sheppard shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets.  
'Not anymore Sheppard, I hear her and she's relieved. She was…concerned that her two favourites would not get along.' Rufus grinned, turning his full attention to Sheppard. 'I don't like to brag but you should be aware that my number is double and a half of yours.'  
'Double and a half!? No wonder she likes you.' Sheppard spluttered, the shock clear to see on his face. 'Oh great, now she's laughing.'  
'Look at it this way, now she's got a favourite on both sides of the team. You worry about the military and I'll watch over the civilians.' Rufus shrugged, eyes widening as a sweet tinkling sound echoed through this air.  
'What was tha'?' Carson asked, looking up again.  
'That's Atlantis; she's elated to have two people she can talk with.' Rufus explained; eyes sliding closed for a moment. 'She regrets that she can't commune with more people here, she keeps trying but they do not hear her.'  
'Especially you Carson, she knows she could help you but for some reason, she can't get through.' John agreed, gaze flicking from Rufus to Carson and back. 'She wants you to know that she's pleased with your attempts with the ATA gene therapy.'  
'Oh well that's nice to know.' Carson smiled, looking up at the ceiling again.  
'She will continue her attempts to communicate with people so do not be concerned if you start hearing voices or seeing directions.' Rufus nodded; a goofy little grin on his face. 'Keep an open mind Carson; we still have so much to learn about Atlantis.'  
'I think I need a wee sit down.' Carson uttered, leaning heavily on Mother's bed.  
'Whoa, easy there Doc.' Mother guided, lunging up and grabbing him under the arms when he threatened to collapse. 'Little help here.'

Getting one arm under Carson's shoulders and wrapping the other under his knees, John lifted him carefully and headed straight for the nearest empty bed, depositing the shocked man with great care and fanning him with one hand.  
'Wha?' Carson mumbled, coming back around and blinking owlishly at the ceiling.  
'You fainted for a moment.' John replied, helping the other man sit up. 'We were talking about Atlantis' sentience and you dropped.'  
'Oh, right.' Carson nodded, running one hand through his hair. 'I dinnae know what came over me there. I don't usually…'  
'It's okay Carson, these things happen to us all.' Aloysius soothed, getting up and looking around for a few minutes before coming back with a mug of water. 'Here, drink up.'  
'Thank ye.' Carson smiled, accepting the mug and scrubbing at his eyes quickly.

Finally feeling steady enough to get back to work, Carson slid off the bed and stood for a few moments, one hand resting on John's shoulder as he regained his balance again. Putting the mug down, his gaze drifted from Rufus to Aloysius and back before he straightened and approached Aloysius' bed.  
'Might want to start with me instead Carson, I'm supposed to be on duty in half an hour and I get the feeling McKay won't be pleased if I'm late.' Rufus suggested, putting his tablet aside and sitting up a little more.  
'Oh, well then let's make suer yer not late.' Carson nodded, turning and picking up the scanner sitting nearby. 'Settle back and we'll get started.'

~^~^~^~^~

Sliding into the lap with seconds to spare, Rufus paused only long enough to draw a breath before heading straight towards the argument taking place in front of one of the many whiteboards around the room. Mind spinning into gear as he gazed at the complex equations on the board, he crossed the room in five steps and pushed McKay and Zelenka back as he plucked the marker and eraser from their hands. Making use to his bulk to keep them out of his way, he got stuck into the equations in front of him, his considerable intelligence supported by Atlantis' computing power.  
'What the…'  
'Rufus, this is…'  
'Both of you, quiet.' Rufus growled, pausing a moment to re-evaluate the equations before continuing his calculations.  
'Who are…'  
'McKay, shut it temporarily before I silence you permanently.' Rufus snarled, elbowing McKay out of the way and correcting another mistake. 'Zelenka, move it.'

Finally setting the equation right, he handed the marker and eraser back and waited, watching the pair going over what he'd written on the board. Admittedly, Rufus only had a basic understanding of what he'd written but he trusted Atlantis when she practically purred with satisfaction.  
'How did you know that?' Radek asked, looking up at Rufus in disbelief.  
'Part of it was just basic physics; the rest came from Atlantis herself.' Rufus shrugged, resting his hands on the knot holding his flight suit up. 'Apparently my high ATA number means that the city can communicate with me in her own way.'  
'That's the biggest load of…ack!' Rodney started then yelped and jumped as a bolt of electricity surged from the floor and struck him on the butt. 'What the hell?'  
'She's just letting you know what she thinks.' Rufus shrugged, fighting to keep the grin off his face.  
'Ow! Then why is she attacking me as well?' Radek asked, rubbing his behind quickly.  
'It would seem that you both managed to piss her off. Had you been left to your own devices, your plan could have resulted in irreparable damage to her.' Rufus smirked, running one hand through his beard quickly. 'Neither of you can hear her so she insisted I get here ASAP.'  
'So who are you anyway?' Rodney demanded, straightening up to his full height.  
'Rufus McKenzie, former Army spec forces and now civilian contractor.' Rufus shrugged, also straightening and enjoying the flicker of fear in McKay's eyes. 'before you ask, no I don't have a PhD in anything, I'm just a humble pilot with an incredible gift for maths and physics plus a special connection to this great city.'  
'No PhDs? How did you even get involved with this program?' Radek asked, jaw dropping at the new revelation.  
'You know I never actually bothered to ask about that. Guess being down on your luck will do that to a guy.' Rufus shrugged, reaching out to make a minor correction to his equations. 'I pick things up fast, shouldn't take me long to get up to speed with everything that isn't directly related to Atlantis or the Ancients.'  
'You teach him.' Rodney insisted, pointing at Radek. 'I don't have the time.'  
'Fine, is your loss.' Radek shrugged, turning away and heading to one of the tables. 'Come Rufus, I have much to show you.'  
'Right behind you Radek.' Rufus grinned, totally relaxed as he followed Radek from the lab.


	3. First Hints

Scowling heavily as he donned the thick leather apron again, Rufus grabbed his welding helmet and slipped it on securely as he reached for the cutting torch waiting for him. He'd been hoping that the bomb bay doors could be pried open through sheer force but they were jammed tight, bent at least nine degrees in from the normal position. Sparking the torch into life, he knocked his mask down and ducked under the jigged Raven. Making sure to avoid the hinges in the hopes they could be salvaged, he started cutting away at the port side door slowly.

So far Radek had two large terrariums to decorate his room, populated with tiny plants that had somehow managed to survive the long trip to Atlantis. After just a quick look in the bay, Rufus had warned him to prepare space for several more and traded for more of the big clear boxes made by one of their interplanetary trading partners. Rufus couldn't help but smile when he remembered Radek asking for him to leave an open area in the middle of the first terrarium so he could place his shoes on the dirt of his homeland.

Acknowledging Atlantis when she warned him he had a visitor coming his way, Rufus continued with the careful cutting, listening closely to the metal creaking under the weight and judging the situation by the sound.  
'Rufus, are you in?' Radek called, pausing just inside the doors.  
'Yeah, I'm here. Grab a set of welding goggles on the way.' Rufus replied, moving the torch out of the way and taking a closer look at the cuts. 'There's some sitting in that crate by the door.'  
'I found them.' Radek confirmed, something thudding to the ground before he approached.  
'Rodney getting on your nerves again?' Rufus chuckled, slapping his mask down again and retuning the torch. 'Eyes!'  
'No more than normal.' Radek shrugged, hanging back a little. 'How goes the repair work?'  
'Still in the cleaning phase.' Rufus shrugged, jumping back as the door dropped to the ground and unleashed a slide of dirt and debris.

Spotting something clinging to the edge of the pile still inside the Raven, Rufus practically shoved the silent torch into Radek's hands and reached in, powerful hands gently cupping under the delicate little plant. Lifting it carefully, he ducked and stepped back, turning to show the flimsy little thing to Radek. Most of what he'd pulled from the Raven had been grasses and various other ground covers. Never a tree, so fragile in his hands and completely unexpected.  
'How did that survive?' Radek uttered, staring at the tree in disbelief.  
'I don't know. Here, you hold it.' Rufus shrugged, carefully handing the precious plant to Radek and making sure he had a secure grip on the fine roots.

Crouching and filling two buckets with the dirt on the floor, Rufus straightened and headed for another of the terrariums he'd already started on. Emptying one of the buckets into the container, he shaped and smoothed the dirt into a natural looking scene before digging a hole and smiling softly as Radek tenderly placed the tiny tree safely in the hole.  
'Here's hoping someone in the city knows something about bonsai. Elizabeth will have both our heads if she finds out about this.' Rufus grinned, picking up a water bottle on the table and giving the weak little tree a much needed drink.  
'I believe Miko knows about bonsai.' Radek nodded, lightly rubbing one of the leaves with one fingertip. 'Shall we see what else might have survived?'  
'I think that sounds like a grand idea.' Rufus agreed, bringing the rolling potting table closer to the Raven and locking the wheels securely.

Taking up small spades and buckets, they cleaned up the dirt that had spilled onto the tarpaulin spread across the floor, sifting out all kinds of weapons, ammunition and equipment that had been shaken free during the crash. Mostly it was small stuff; a few loose bullets, spare parts, a grenade, several carabineers, handcuffs and a selection of keys on rings.  
'An odd collection of items.' Radek remarked, carefully flicking another bullet into the pile.  
'Looks like the random crap locker was breeched.' Rufus nodded, emptying his bucket into the nearest terrarium.  
'Seems to be a universal constant.' Radek agreed, shaping the dirt in another terrarium.  
'It just happens that our random crap is a little more dangerous.' Rufus chuckled, deftly removing another grenade from the pile. 'Most of this stuff belongs to Aloysius; he keeps it close just in case.'  
'Seems like a smart idea. Just in case is often what happens around Pegasus.' Radek sighed, sinking back down and continuing to dig.

Cleaning up most of the dirt on the floor, Rufus stood and looked in the hold again. Removing the port door had dumped most of the dirt out but there was still a sizeable pile behind the completely inverted starboard door.  
'How did so much dirt get in here?' Radek asked, standing on tiptoe and clutching at Rufus' arm for balance. 'Did you have the bay doors open or something?'  
'No, they were closed at the point of impact. Looking at that dent though, I'd guess I hit a tree and that forced the starboard door around backwards, opening the way for the dirt.' Rufus shrugged, sifting through the dirt to retrieve a slightly battered H&K G36 buried in the pile.  
'Give me boost, I will shovel it out.' Radek offered, holding up the short shovel Rufus had leant against the jig.  
'Alright, sounds like a fair deal. Just get what you can; I'll have to cut that door free anyway.' Rufus nodded, sinking to one knee. 'Put your foot here.'

Boosting Radek up into the hold, Rufus moved clear as he started shovelling the dirt out, scattering it on the tarpaulin so he could go through it for any bits and pieces that had come free during the crash. Grabbing up a plastic garden rake that he'd thrown into their supplies for exactly this purpose, Rufus scratched through the dirt and collected all manner of parts and equipment that needed to be cleaned, sorted and restocked when the Raven was back together.

Thoughts drifting to something Aloysius had mentioned the night before, Rufus sighed softly as he raked through another shovelful and hooked out another set of carabineers from the mess.  
'Hey Radek, I've been hearing about this mandatory combat training. What's that all about?' he asked, aiming for innocent curiosity but not sure he made it.  
'Ah, I meant to warn you about that.' Radek replied, poking his head out. 'Is a painful interruption to daily schedule.'  
'Painful? You mean the Marines are beating up on the scientists?' Rufus blanched, setting his rake aside and ducking under the Raven.  
'Ano, you are correct.' Radek sighed, sitting up and lifting his shirt to reveal a long bruise across his right side. 'This one was from yesterday's session.'  
'Are they allowed to do that?' Rufus asked, still not totally sure what made those long bruises.  
'It would seem so; they have been going for over a year now.' Radek shrugged, tucking his shirt back in quickly. 'Is best not to argue, hurts less in the long run.'  
'That bruise is different from what I would normally consider a close combat training injury.' Rufus remarked; occupying his hands with digging through the dirt still piled in the bay.  
'Have you never noticed the Athosian fighting sticks in the gym?' Radek asked, also digging through the dirt piles.  
'Can't say I have but then, I don't go to the gym often.' Rufus shrugged, retrieving another handgun and a climbing rope from the mess. 'I get all my exercise running around the labs and working down here.'  
'This makes sense.' Radek nodded, tossing him another rope he'd located. 'Those sticks hurt terribly when they hit.'  
'Next time you have one of these sessions, call me will you? I'd like to see just what these Marines are trying.' Rufus requested, investigating the mangled hinges on the starboard door. 'I have a feeling they're breaking the rules with these mandatory sessions but I don't know for sure.'  
'I have session in the morning, after breakfast. I do not know exactly where it will be, they change the locations every time.' Radek offered, sending another landslide out the doors. 'Surely Atlantis will be of help with that.'  
'I'll find you, don't worry.' Rufus nodded, reaching out to rest one hand on Radek's shoulder. 'If they're doing anything wrong, I'll put a stop to it.'  
'Thank you.' Radek smiled faintly, patting Rufus' hand lightly. 'Come, there is still much to do.'  
'Aye, just make sure you keep an eye out for any more plants we can save.' Rufus nodded, ducking back out of the wounded bird.  
'I am.' Radek confirmed as another shovel of dirt flew out. 'Rufus, here. I have another.'

Ducking under again and accepting the incredibly delicate little flowering planet Radek was cradling, Rufus planted it in a different terrarium and went back to his clean up efforts. He couldn't stop thinking about what had been said, the words tumbling around in his head along with the discussion he'd had with Aloysius the night before. At least now they had some evidence that the long bruises were made by the fighting sticks Aloysius had already investigated as a potential weapon. They still didn't know who was doing this or who else might be a victim but at least now they had something to go on. They would just have to see where this new Intel took them and hope for the best. One thing was for certain, Rufus was going to make damn sure no one ever raised a hand to Radek again.

Thinking about that for a moment, he amended his original thought to include several other civilians that he'd gotten quite friendly with over the last few weeks. If he had to, he would physically protect them all but he wasn't sure he could. He wasn't the victim he'd once been and he wasn't the one trick pony he'd shown Scarecrow he could be. He was more than a pilot, he could hold his own in a fight but he'd never tried it while trying to protect civilians behind him.

That wouldn't stop him from trying though. He would give his all to putting an end to this, no matter who he had to tear apart to protect his friends from further harm. He would not let anyone harm those he considered a friend.  
'Rufus, are you still there?' Radek's voice cut into his internal musings.  
'Yeah, I'm still here. Sorry, was thinking about other things.' Rufus replied, going back to his raking and pushing down his protective thoughts.  
'I found another survivor.' Radek called, hands appearing below the fighter clutching at another delicate little plant.  
'How's it going in there?' Rufus grinned, accepting the specimen and planting it in a much nicer home. 'You don't have to get everything out from behind the door.'  
'Have not even started there. Have cleared the rest of the bay though.' Radek replied, still rattling around in the hold. 'And found many items of value to you.'  
'Alright, jump down and I'll get that door out of the way.' Rufus nodded, reaching up to accept the box of random stuff Radek had found.

Setting the salvage safely out of the way, Rufus turned back to help Radek down, only to end up with an armful of startled scientist when Radek slipped on something and stumbled backwards. Chuckling softly, Rufus ducked out from under the Raven again and set Radek on his feet safely.  
'You okay?' he asked, keeping one hand on Radek's shoulder for the moment. 'I don't often get smart men falling for me.'  
'Ano, thank you.' Radek nodded, straightening his glasses quickly. 'I believe I slipped on a rock.'  
'I did that earlier.' Rufus grinned, turning his left arm over to reveal a long bloody scratch down the back. 'I've already sealed it and will go see Carson once the clean up is finished.'  
'Wait a minute…were you flirting then?' Radek blinked, looking up at Rufus in disbelief. 'I must be tired…I thought…maybe...'  
'Only if you wanted it.' Rufus winked, stepping past Radek to collect his welding apron and mask.  
'And if I did?' Radek asked, slipping his welding goggles back into place and held back as Rufus sparked the torch into life again.  
'I'd treat you like you were the most important person in my life.' Rufus offered, giving Radek a tender look before slapping down his mask and starting on the starboard door.

Realising that Radek had gone quiet, Rufus looked up from the careful cut he was making and frowned when he discovered that Radek had left the workshop without a word. Sighing heavily, he went back to his work and hoped to the heavens that he hadn't done anything to upset Radek. He couldn't do anything about it now, he just had to wait and pray.

~^~^~^~^~

Wandering into the mess for lunch, Aloysius ran one hand through his hair and grabbed a meal, looking around for somewhere to sit. Trying to shake his bad mood, he headed over to join Shane, Mother and Buck at their table, setting his tray down and dropping into a chair beside Mother.  
'What's got you so down?' Buck asked, sipping his coffee as he watched Aloysius closely.  
'Huh? Oh, nothing. Just thinking about stuff.' Aloysius shrugged, prodding at the mac cheese on his plate. 'Been thinking about these mandatory combat training sessions.'  
'Anything new to report?' Shane asked, leaning forward in his chair.  
'We think we've figured out what's leaving some of the bruises.' Aloysius uttered, also leaning forward. 'The bantos rods in the gym are a likely source.'  
'I can attest to how much those hurt.' Shane agreed, rubbing lightly at one shoulder. 'I tried my luck against Teyla; she whooped my ass in minutes.'  
'But why would anyone do that?' Mother asked, careful to keep her voice down. 'Ain't the scientists the only ones who understand this city?'  
'Doesn't seem to stop them. Should have more Intel tomorrow, gonna tail one and see where that leads.' Aloysius shrugged, comfortable with letting these three know about their job here.  
'This seat taken?' Rufus asked, coming over to join them.  
'Would have thought you'd prefer to sit with the other scientists.' Shane remarked, pulling out the chair beside him.  
'They bicker too much.' Rufus shrugged, dropping down and starting on his lunch. 'Got a new lead on this job. Radek's got one of those MCT sessions tomorrow and I'm gonna tail him.'  
'Interesting. I got a lead on one of the guys that might be doing this. We might end up in the same spot.' Aloysius nodded, thinking through what they knew and trying to find a solution.

Head snapping up at the sound of Sheppard calling his name, Rufus bounded out of his chair and hustled to meet the only other man with a direct link to Atlantis. So far the city was abiding by their division, calling on one or the other whenever she needed to get a message out. Flying down the stairs, he found Sheppard coming from the direction of the gateroom.  
'Carson's disappeared. No one has seen him since breakfast.' Sheppard briefed, looking up at him for answers. 'We've already tried the life sign detectors and we've got nothing.'  
'Shit. If the detectors can't find him, Atlantis might not know where he went.' Rufus warned, reaching for the nearest wall and closing his eyes. 'Come on sweet thing, show me where Carson is. You can do it, show me where to find Carson Beckett.'  
'Well, can she find him?' Sheppard asked, clearly worried for the good doctor.  
'Yeah, we've got him.' Rufus nodded, opening his eyes and preparing for the run. 'Stay here, I'll bring him back. He's my responsibility.'

Spinning and bolting away, Rufus took full advantage of his longest stride, barrelling around corners and yelling warnings for people to get the hell out of his way. Diving into the first transporter and slapping the screen, he was taken right across the city and burst out again, following the flashing guides Atlantis put before him. Out here, there were less people to worry about so he stayed silent and focused all his energy on running like the hounds of hell were after him. Swinging around corners and vaulting over obstacles, he ran harder and faster than he ever had before, urged on by the mournful cries of Atlantis echoing around him.

Flying around another corner and plunging into the cold, abandoned depths of the lower levels of the north pier, Rufus slowed and listened intently for any sign of the missing doctor. Atlantis kept offering guidance but she was less confident with her directions now, apologising profusely that she couldn't be more accurate until repairs were affected. Easing back to a fast walk, Rufus settled for repeatedly calling for Carson and listening closely for any response.

Straining his ears, he called again and froze when he heard a muffled shout coming back at him. Turning slowly, he repeated his desperate call again and locked on to the response, bursting into action and sweeping into another maze of rooms as he heard a dull thud and a subdued groan. Sliding through another door, his heart leapt into his throat as he found Carson at last but it was extremely clear that whoever was attacking the civilians wasn't limiting themselves to beatings.

Carson stood there with some kind of black fabric bag over his head and his arms pinned behind his back, frantically twisting back and forth as he tried to scream for help but only managed a barely audible mumble. Then he started staggering forward, chest heaving as he tried desperately to find his way out of this hell.  
'Carson, stop!' Rufus barked, deeply concerned for the other man. 'There's a pile of debris right in front of you. Stay right there, I'm coming. Just stay right there, don't move.'

Dragging away some of the debris and clearing a path through it, Rufus reached out and gently curled one hand over Carson's shoulder, pulling the trembling man to him and holding him securely as he shuddered and moaned in distress.  
'Shh, you're safe now Carson. I've got you, you're okay.' Rufus soothed, drawing his favourite old hunting knife and cutting through the strings holding the bag over Carson's head.

Turning the knife so it appeared less threatening, he lifted the bag off and sliced through the dirty white fabric someone had fashioned into a gag. Tossing that aside, he kept Carson tucked close as he started on the thick, coarse rope tied around his wrists.  
'Oh god…oh god.' Carson panted, sagging into his strength. 'Thank ye Rufus, thank ye.'  
'Shh, catch your breath and relax.' Rufus uttered, finally getting through the ropes and tucking his knife away. 'I've got you, I'm right here Carson.'  
'Where am I?' Carson asked; bringing his hands up to clutch at Rufus' stained coveralls. 'Last thing I remember is heading to the infirmary after breakfast. Then I was down here, gettin' a beatin' before they let me go and told me to find my own way back.'  
'We're in the lowest levels of the north pier, right out near the edge of the city.' Rufus offered, rubbing soothing patterns on Carson's back. 'My guess, whoever did this drugged you. That's the only explanation I can think of for the memory gap.'

Tightening his grip a little when Carson's knees buckled, Rufus sunk down to sit on the floor and welcomed Carson into his lap, rocking slowly as he tried to comfort him after his ordeal. There were no words that could make this any better so Rufus settled for a secure hold and gentle reassurance that he was safe.  
'I dinnae understand. I was told I had to get back on my own.' Carson whispered, pressing closer to Rufus' warmth. 'They said Colonel Sheppard wanted us all ta be evasion capable.'  
'They lied to you, Carson. Colonel Sheppard never authorised any of these combat training sessions. He certainly didn't allow this either.' Rufus corrected, guiding Carson to tuck his head under his chin. 'John was the one who told me you'd gone missing. Atlantis is so embarrassed that she lost you due to maintenance issues.'  
'No yet fault, Atlantis.' Carson offered; his shaking getting worse as they sat there. 'I coulda got hurt down here. Possibly worse…but why?'  
'I don't know Carson. I wish I had an answer to that but right now, I'm as clueless as you are.' Rufus sighed, tightening his grip a little. 'What matters is that you're safe now.'

With a frightened keen, Carson broke and sobbed helplessly, fingers digging into Rufus' chest and side as he tried to get even closer. Trying to be gentle in case he pressed on a fresh bruise, Rufus held him as close as possible and let him cry on his shoulder. Muttering reassurances and stroking Carson's back, he split his attention between Carson's ragged mumbling and Atlantis' concerns.  
'Yes, you can tell John that I found Carson and he's safe now. Don't tell him where, I'm sure he doesn't want a big audience right now.' he instructed, tightening his grip a little when Carson tensed. 'It's okay Carson; no one else knows anything about this. It's our secret; no one else needs to know anything.'  
'I'd prefer that.' Carson agreed, sniffing weakly and sagging into Rufus again.  
'Atlantis, I want you to watch over Carson and inform me if you think he is in any danger. Whether that is because he's surrounded by signals or because he's too close to one of your sensor dead zones. I want to know about it immediately.' Rufus directed, shifting a little so he could rest his cheek against Carson's sweaty hair.  
'Thank ye again.' Carson choked, shaking like an autumn leaf against Rufus' chest.  
'I won't let anyone hurt you ever again, Carson. I can't always watch over you but Atlantis can and will, she'll make sure nothing can happen.' Rufus promised, determined to never let those bastards hurt his friends again. 'Yes dear, protect him too.'  
'Ye know someone else targeted in this madness?' Carson mumbled, shoulders heaving as he continued to weep.  
'I'm not telling who either. They deserve their privacy as much as you do.' Rufus nodded, refusing to admit to anything just yet.  
'I won't pry.' Carson uttered, perfectly content to curl close and accept the comfort.

Summoning a weak smile as he finally sat back, Carson shuddered and wiped his eyes quickly, hissing in pain when he touched near his right eye. Hanging his head again, he flinched when a large hand tenderly cupped his cheek and drew his head up slowly.  
'You don't have to hide from me, Carson. I'll keep you safe.' Rufus promised; thumb stroking over Carson's cheek. 'You'll have a nasty black eye for a few days.'  
'Aye and some serious rope burns.' Carson agreed, presenting his aching wrists again.  
'Those are easier to hide. Just means long sleeves for a while.' Rufus nodded, examining the rope burns closely. 'You'll have to wrap them for a few days to help them heal.'  
'Ye seem ta know a lot about such injuries.' Carson remarked, trying to find his smile again.  
'I've been a prisoner before, long time ago.' Rufus sighed, using his sleeve to dry Carson's face. 'It's not something we talk about often.'  
'Aye, don't really wanna talk about this either.' Carson agreed, shuddering sharply at the memory.  
'Ready to get out of here?' Rufus asked, running his fingers through Carson's hair lightly.  
'Aye, but I'm no sure me legs will hold.' Carson admitted, flushing faintly as he spoke.  
'It's okay, I'll carry you most of the way.' Rufus grinned, helping Carson regain his feet.

Leaning heavily against the wall, Carson watched Rufus ease to his feet and reached up to wrap one arm around Rufus' powerful shoulders. He was so tired, head pounding and mouth dry as he relaxed into the strength of the much bigger man.  
'Just relax, I've got you.' Rufus soothed, hooking his left arm behind Carson's knees and lifting.  
'Oh bloody hell.' Carson yelped, not at all used to being swept off his feet with such ease.  
'What, did you think these shoulders were just for show?' Rufus chuckled, shifting his grip a little and starting the long walk back.  
'I know I'm no lightweight.' Carson admitted, resting his head against Rufus' shoulder.  
'Ah, you're not that heavy.' Rufus grinned, carefully manoeuvring through the debris field. 'I work with heavily gear every day.'

Relief flooding him, Rufus kept one eye on Carson's condition as he headed back towards the nearest functioning transporter. Whispering calming words, he cradled the shaken man close and smiled as Carson finally succumbed to exhaustion and closed his eyes. Only then did Rufus activate his secondary radio, most of his attention on getting them to safety but he needed to update Aloysius on the situation.  
"Sitrep buddy." Aloysius requested; voice tight with concern.  
'He's safe, sleeping in my arms as we speak.' Rufus responded, careful not to belt Carson into anything as he navigated the way back. 'We need to step up our plans.'  
"I'm open for ideas." Aloysius agreed, hating that they still didn't know who was doing this.  
'Carson's not up to talking about it, he's scared and hurting. At this point, best option is to maintain previous plan and continue to hunt for the perps.' Rufus suggested, making it back to the transporter and tapping at a location near the infirmary.  
"Figured that would be the plan. Okay, we'll meet tomorrow night and go over what we learn from our targets." Aloysius confirmed, clearly not happy about the idea.  
'I'll see if Carson knows anything pertinent too but I don't expect much.' Rufus agreed, stepping out of the transporter again. 'Oh and tell Sheppard that Carson's in the infirmary.'  
"I'll pass that on. Anything else?"  
'Yeah, tell him to keep it quiet. Carson's already said he doesn't want a huge audience to see him like this.' Rufus nodded, adjusting his grip again as he came around another corner.  
"Got it, I'll do my best to keep McKay distracted. Knight out."

Entering the infirmary and catching the attention of one of the nurses on duty, Rufus didn't hesitate the enter one of the private rooms and tenderly deposit Carson on the bed. Unhooking his hands from their firm grip on his collar, he straightened and dutifully helped the nurse get Carson's jacket and shoes off.  
'How is he?' Sheppard asked, appearing in the doorway.  
'Traumatised and scared mostly.' Rufus replied, stepping back so the nurse could work. 'Take care of him Chantelle.'  
'I will Rufus. Thank you for bringing him back.' she nodded, tutting over the state of Carson's wrists. 'Anything else I should know about?'  
'He took a beating before they bound him and left him in the north pier to find his own way back. It's lucky I found him when I did, he almost fell into a pile of sharp debris.' Rufus sighed, shaking his head slowly. 'This has to stop, Sheppard.'  
'I don't even know what's going on.' John shrugged, motioning for Rufus to follow him.  
'Right now, no one really knows what's going on.' Rufus sighed, following Sheppard from the room and hoping Aloysius was on his way. He really didn't know how to explain this situation.

Hustling through the door, Aloysius took one look at the situation before sidling up beside Rufus and reaching up to squeeze his shoulder lightly. Often, it took just one touch for them to know what the other was thinking and this time was no different. The tension and stiffness he could feel told him more than words could ever say.  
'Sheppard, when we were hired, we were informed that we would have almost complete autonomy to deal with the problem as required. Elizabeth has already made it clear that she doesn't want to know anything other than when the job is complete.' Aloysius stated, squaring his shoulders and meeting John's gaze. 'You need to back off and let us work or we're on the first flight back to earth.'  
'Oh for…' Rufus started, hand flying up to his earpiece. 'Rufus to McKay! Answer me Rodney.'  
"What is it?" Rodney asked; voice tight with frustration.  
'Atlantis informs me that at your current velocity you will enter a dark area in thirty seconds. If you enter this area, no one will know your location until you emerge from the dark zone. Should something happen to you, there is no guarantee that help will arrive in time to protect or save you.' Rufus warned, holding up his other hand to silence Sheppard. 'Now either you come back to a safer area or run the risk of a potential injury with no assistance.'  
"I'm heading back." Rodney replied, his words accompanied by a happy whistle from Atlantis.  
'Smart idea Rodney. Next time you want to head out there, take someone trustworthy with you.' Rufus nodded, tapping his radio again. 'So what's it gonna be Sheppard? You backing off or not?'  
'Alright, I'll back off. I don't like it but something needs to be done about this problem.' Sheppard agreed, holding up his hands in surrender.  
'We'll take care of everything Sheppard, just sit back and let us work.' Aloysius promised, one hand falling to the USP at his hip. 'If this turns out to be a military based problem, we'll let you know.'  
'Fair enough. I'd better go make sure Rodney's safe, he's a pain but we'd be screwed without him.' Sheppard agreed; turning and leaving the infirmary.  
'Rufus, he's awake and asking for you.' Chantelle called, poking her head out of the private room.  
'It never rains but it pours.' Rufus muttered, glancing at Aloysius for a second before turning and hurrying back to Carson's side.

Within minutes, Rufus emerged from the private room with Carson held safely in his arms again. Barely sparing a look at Aloysius, he slipped out of the infirmary and headed straight for the nearest transporter.  
'Thank ya again.' Carson uttered, looking at the dressings around his wrists. 'I dinnae want anyone else seeing me like this.'  
'It's okay Carson, I've been there.' Rufus soothed, tapping at a location near his quarters. 'Just relax; we'll take care of you. I know a place where you can rest without worrying about being disturbed.'  
'Sounds lovely.' Carson agreed, resting his head on Rufus' shoulder again. 'By we, ya mean you and Atlantis, right?'  
'Now you're getting it, Carson. I've got to go on shift but Atlantis will keep the doors locked to anyone but me.' Rufus nodded, approaching his quarters and smiling as the door slid open for him.  
'These aren't my quarters.' Carson remarked, looking around a little.  
'No, these are mine.' Rufus corrected, depositing Carson on the couch and heading to grab something he'd bought from earth.  
'But I…' Carson started, sinking into the soft cushions.  
'Yes you can, you have my permission to stay here as long as you like.' Rufus chuckled, returning with a neatly tied bundle of newspapers. 'Here, you might find these interesting.'  
'What have ye got there Rufus?' Carson asked, opening his left eye slowly.  
'Two years worth of a newspaper I subscribe to. Don't always get the time to read them so I stockpile until I've got some spare time.' Rufus nodded, flipping the bundle over and untying the string. 'Here, have a look.'  
'The Scottish Banner? I've nae heard of it before.' Carson remarked, looking at the cover closely.  
'It's nothing but the latest news from Scotland. Everything from politics, to stories of the old days and columns about the meanings of different names or tartans.' Rufus grinned, sinking to one knee beside Carson. 'I figure since you're not feeling up to working, you can relax and catch up on all the news you've missed.'  
'Aye, I'd like that.' Carson smiled, settling the newspaper on his lap and getting comfortable.  
'There's cold water, tea and some snacks in the kitchenette if you want them. Make yourself at home, you're safe here. I'll check in on you a little later.' Rufus continued, grabbing his tablet from where he'd left it. 'I've got to go wrangle with McKay again.'  
'He means well.' Carson sighed, looking up again. 'Ye really are too kind, Rufus.'  
'I've been where you are Carson, long time ago. No one was there to help me get over the fright so I'm doing what I can for others in a similar mess.' Rufus shrugged, shouldering into his jacket.  
'I see.' Carson nodded, refusing to push Rufus for more information.

Slipping off his heavy work boots and kneeling to lace up his joggers, he checked his pockets quickly and dumped a collection of small parts and ammunition in a simple wooden bowl sitting on the table near the door. One last check to make sure, lifting the pencil from behind his ear and adding that to the pile along with the heavy gloves tucked through his belt.  
'Get some rest if you can, Carson. I'll check in later.' he smiled, palming the door open.  
'I'll try.' Carson nodded, looking up from his reading. 'Try not ta torment Rodney too much.'  
'No promises.' Rufus chuckled, dropping a wink before slipping from the room.


	4. Confrontations

Slinking down one of the lowest corridors, Aloysius glanced at Shane and nodded faintly, the pair of them determined to get some answers at long last. Normally Aloysius would work alone or at least with Rufus but the latest news from Atlantis was that there were multiple attacks taking place and they needed to split their resources if they were ever going to put an end to this horror. Of course, without a direct link to Atlantis it was harder to figure out where they were meant to be going but that wasn't about to stop them.

Treading light, they made their way along the darkened corridor slowly, constantly listening and searching for any hint of why they had come all the way out here. Head snapping around at the sound of a pained groan coming from one of the nearby rooms, Aloysius crossed the corridor and plucked one of his shuriken from the pouch on his belt. Holding the weapon ready, he approached the door and tapped at the controls, trusting Atlantis to know what he needed of her.

Spinning into the doorway as the doors slid open silently, Aloysius didn't even hesitate, launching his shuriken across the room and into the shoulder of a Marine holding one of the bantos rods. Charging forward, he tackled the second one back from the scientist on the ground and reached out to grab the third one by the belt, yanking him away from the downed civilian.  
'Scarecrow, come grab this one!' he called, kicking number four in the groin as he rolled backwards with two and three.

Bursting into the room, Scarecrow launched a devastating kick into the head of number one and landed lightly as the other man stumbled back and thudded into the wall. Ducking under a wildly flailing foot, he grabbed the scientist bodily and hoisted her over his shoulders before bolting out of the room with her.  
'We're clear Knight!' he yelled, clearing the area as quickly as he could.  
'Get her to Beckett!' Knight snapped, still mostly focused on the threat in the room with him.  
'Copy that.' Shane acknowledged, pushing down on his urge to help Knight and continuing back towards the main part of the city. 'You still with me Miko?'

Sparing no thought for Schofield and the scientist they'd rescued from hell, Aloysius stepped up his game as he rolled to his feet and squared off against the four thugs locked in the room with him. Twisting clear of a fist thundering towards his head from thug two, he responded with a brutal left cross at thug four and kicked thug three in the gut as he slid to the right. Dropping, he cracked thug one in the groin and rolled, squeezing between three and four as he sprang back to his feet.

Bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet, he lunged in again, sending thug four back into the wall and ducking so thug two's right cross caught thug one in the jaw instead. Shifting his weight back, he grunted when thug three got in a lucky shot to his chest, driving the air from his lungs seconds before a second blow snapped his head back and sent his glasses flying. Eyes squeezing closed, he bit his tongue to stop the pained cry from slipping out and shook his head quickly to clear the fuzziness before launching back into the fight.

~^~^~^~^~

Trusting that Rufus' directions were correct, Mother hustled down another corridor with Buck at her side and a vague location to guide them. At this point, they still weren't sure what to expect down here, they just knew that something was going down and they had to put an end to it as fast as humanly possible. The planning wasn't really Mother's concern, she was just thankful to have something to do other than drills and general maintenance duties.

Getting to a spot that matched the image they'd been shown, she tapped lightly at the door controls and moved back, every muscle tensed and ready for a fight. Beside her, Buck pressed up against the wall on the other side of the room and hefted a lone flash bang. They could both hear the vague, muffled cries of someone in great pain beyond the door. Other voices filtered through as well, at least four but possibly more.

Nodding sharply, Buck pulled the pin and swept the grenade into the room, flicking it up a little more in hopes of avoiding any further harm to the victim inside. Pushing off the wall as the grenade went off, Mother ploughed into the room, narrowly avoiding stepping on the two scientists curled up on the floor together. Sparing them no thought, she tackled two of the stumbling aggressors in the room and took them to the floor hard.

Following Mother into the room, Buck hurdled the two civilians and smashed into the remaining two assholes on their feet. One went down hard, yowling in pain as someone stomped on his groin. It could have been Buck for all the attention he was paying to him. He was far too busy trading punches with the one he'd managed to pin against the wall. Grunting at the stunning blow to his left cheek, Buck rammed his knee up hard and yanked, throwing his opponent to the floor.

Knocking one of her opponents out, Mother snarled as she grabbed the other by the collar and belt, hoisting him off his feet and throwing him across the room. Already on the move as he crunched against the far wall, she grabbed both civilians on the floor and hustled them towards the door.  
'Pick it up Buck, let's move!' she roared, releasing the civilians and smashing her new opponent in the face with both fists.  
'Right with you!' Buck responded, head butting his opponent and breaking free.

Remembering Knight's instructions to act fast and move faster, Buck grabbed one of the civilians and charged from the room, cradling the injured woman to his chest as he ran down the corridor. Behind him, Mother barely noticed the weight of the tall, skinny guy draped over her shoulders as she thundered back towards the centre of the city.  
'Well at least no one's shooting at us.' Buck remarked, sliding around a corner and slowing down.  
'Don't fuckin' jinx us.' Mother growled, falling into step beside him. 'This is totally fuckin' insane.'  
'I hear you there.' Buck agreed, settling into an easy jog and listening for any signs of a pursuit.

~^~^~^~^~

Diving through the opening door, Rufus rolled and bounced up to his feet, left hand whipping out to grab his opponent by the right hand. Squeezing with all his strength, he felt the bones give way under his power and snarled, shoving the man back against the wall. Kicking the dropped bantos rod aside, he reached for his own custom made fighting sticks and watched his opponents circling him slowly.

Right arm coming up as he dropped his left, he jabbed thug three in the groin as he caught thug two's strike on his forearm. It hurt but Rufus wasn't about to quit. Turning sharply, he bought his left arm around and cracked thug two solidly across the head, dropping him to the floor in a heap. Ducking under a wild swing from thug one, he planted his hands and kicked out, both feet crashing into thug three's chest and sending him flying.

Spinning his sticks in his hands, he watched thug four closely, judging the threat levels and deciding that he was the greater danger. Responding fast to the threat, he swung his left stick to block another sloppy attack from thug one as he nailed thug four with a stinging blow to the chest. Twisting his wrist, he cracked thug four in the chin with the end of his stick and landed a painful blow to thug one's already shattered hand with the other stick.

Growing weary of the game and increasingly concerned that Radek hadn't moved from his position on the floor, Rufus stepped over him carefully. Lunging suddenly, he clobbered thug four with both sticks, driving one into his solar plexus as the other smacked into his head and knocked him to the ground. Rufus watched him for a moment, making sure that he was truly out cold and not just pretending to avoid another beating.

Turning back around to relocate thug one, Rufus snarled at the sight of him awkwardly clutching a combat knife in his left hand as he crouched over Radek's prone form. Letting out a roar, Rufus dropped his sticks and tackled the threat, vaguely noting the bite of the blade into the back of his left shoulder as they hit the floor hard. Ramming his elbow into the already destroyed hand, he head butted the other man and grabbed his left arm, twisting until he heard a sharp snap and the bastard finally stopped fighting.

Groaning with every movement, he pushed back to his feet and headed for Radek, every step sending tendrils of agony through him. Sinking to one knee beside Radek, he frowned as he realised Radek was unconscious, a severe black eye a good indication of why. Gently rolling the smaller man over, Rufus sat him up and lifted him off the floor, supporting him with his right arm as he left the room slowly.

~^~^~^~^~

Lingering in the infirmary in case any of those assholes turned up to cause more damage, the team rubbed at bruised knuckles and talked quietly about what they had uncovered so far. Not only were they trying to piece everything together but they were also waiting for Rufus to either turn up or radio in with his location. No one had heard anything from him since they split up to try and get more Intel on these bastards.  
'Come on buddy, this ain't like you.' Aloysius muttered, glancing towards the door again as he tapped his second radio. 'Rufus, do you copy?'  
'Still no answer?' Shane asked, resting one hand on Aloysius' shoulder.  
'Nothing. This isn't like him.' Aloysius nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets. 'Come on buddy, where are you?'  
'I need a little help out here.' Ronon called, drawing everyone's attention.

First out the door, Aloysius stopped and stared in shock and disbelief at the sight of Ronon struggling to move Radek and Rufus closer to the infirmary. Shaking off his stupor, Aloysius hustled forward and slipped under Rufus' arm, allowing Ronon to step out and focus on Radek.  
'Where did you find them?' Shane asked, circling the situation. 'He's been stabbed.'  
'Found them outside the transporter back there.' Ronon briefed, handing Radek off to Mother. 'Told Sheppard I'd clean up the mess once I'd gotten them to safety.'  
'I'll help with the cleanup.' Buck offered, hurrying past to grab the cleaning supplies.  
'We'll let you know what they're up for visitors.' Aloysius nodded, tightening his grip on Rufus' belt and starting to walk/drag/carry Rufus towards the infirmary doors. 'Beckett!'

Setting Radek down gently on the nearest bed, Mother spun to assist Aloysius, grabbing a handful of Rufus' flight suit and taking some of the weight off Knight's shoulders. Mostly ignoring Beckett's shocked gasp, they worked together to get Rufus on the first available bed as Shane grabbed a rolling trolley and shoved it over to support Rufus' feet.  
'Looks like a standard Marine K-Bar. Overall length 12 inches. Blade length 7 inches. Six inches of penetration…' Aloysius started, moving back a step as Carson approached the bed. 'I never should have sent him out on his own.'  
'It's not your fault Aloysius.' Shane offered, guiding him back another step so Carson and his team could get to work. 'It could have happened to any of us.'  
'But it wasn't just anyone. Rufus' skills aren't as developed as ours; he's been a pilot most of his adult life. I never should have agreed to let him go alone.' Aloysius corrected, wrenching away from Shane.  
'Stop fussin'…was my choice.' Rufus mumbled, lifting his head for a moment. 'My back…Radek's throat…no brainer.'  
'Stay still lad. We'll get ye inta surgery soon.' Carson soothed, working quickly to remove Rufus' tee-shirt from around the knife. 'Just relax yer in good hands now.'  
'I know…trust you.' Rufus agreed, settling back down. 'Radek…is he safe?'  
'He's safe, buddy. Mother's standing guard over him.' Aloysius replied, tugging Rufus' shoes off and setting them aside. 'Rest, we'll take care of him.'  
'm'kay.' Rufus mumbled, eyes slipping closed slowly. 'Protect him.'  
'With my life.' Aloysius promised, deftly removing Rufus' gun belt and draping it over his shoulder safely. 'Not that I have any idea why you're so focused on him.'  
'Finding out can wait. We need ta get him inta surgery.' Carson shrugged, waving his team in. 'we'll let ye know how it goes.'  
'Thank you.' Aloysius nodded, moving back to sit by Radek's bedside. 'So now we know of three groups working inside the city. I just wish we knew how many were in that third group.'  
'Ctyri muži.' Radek slurred, slowly opening his eyes. 'Tam byli ctyri muži.'  
'Ctyri…shit, I should have read up on my Czech…ctyri…' Aloysius groaned, trying desperately to remember his basic language skills.  
'Jedna…dva…tri…ctyri.' Radek mumbled, weakly twitching his fingers.  
'Four men? That's what you saw, four men?' Shane asked, watching Radek's hand trembling with effort against his thigh.  
'Ano.' Radek smiled tiredly, shifting slowly onto his side. 'Hurts.'  
'Looks like you took a nasty beating.' Shane nodded, reaching out to brush Radek's hair out of his eyes. 'Gonna have a nasty black eye too.'  
'Rufus?' Radek requested, looking a little more alert. 'Is he…?'  
'In surgery at the moment. One of the men who attacked you stabbed him in the back.' Shane offered, smiling softly at the dopey scientist. 'Come on, you can't sleep anymore Doc. You need to stay awake so the medical team can check you over.'  
'You are evil man.' Radek sighed, scrubbing one hand over his face. 'My glasses?'  
'No idea. I'll get someone to bring you a spare pair.' Aloysius shrugged, tapping at his radio before Radek could reply. 'McKay, you there? I need you to send someone to the infirmary with Radek's spare glasses. No doubt he's got a pair or two stashed in the labs somewhere.'  
"Is he okay? I can't do every…"  
'He live, a little battered and bruised but it could have been so much worse.' Aloysius cut in, looking towards Radek again. 'I doubt he'll be into work today, we'll have to see what Carson says first. He's got a big black eye and probably a severe concussion.'  
"I'll bring his spare glasses."  
'Thank you Rodney.' Aloysius smiled, quickly shutting off his radio before he was subjected to another infamous McKay rant. 'He's worried about you.'  
'That is surprise.' Radek remarked, shifting again. 'Icepack anyone?'  
'Here, it's still mostly cold.' Mother offered, holding out an icepack. 'Beckett insisted on it for my knuckles. It's more use to you anyway.'  
'Thank you.' Radek smiled, accepting the icepack and pressing it to his face. 'Those men hit hard.'  
'Most Marines are trained to hit as hard as possible.' Mother chuckled, rubbing at her bruised knuckles. 'What I don't get is why they're attacking civilians, particularly this group today.'  
'Yeah, that's bothering me too. Miko, David, Katie and Radek…there's no logic in the selection. Two physicists and two botanists, two male and two female…what's the connection?' Shane groaned, running one hand through his hair.  
'Let's not forget about the fact they attacked Carson a few times.' Aloysius added, pushing to his feet and starting to pace. 'The only connection between the victims is the fact that they're all civilians. Different nations, different backgrounds, different universities, different faiths…nothing matches up between all the victims except the fact they're all civilians.'  
'Some of us are former military.' Radek corrected, lifting his blurred gaze slowly. 'Was some 30 years ago but still.'  
'But you are the only one with former military service so that's a statistical outlier that can be dismissed.' Aloysius nodded, turning back to the bed. 'No offence of course.'  
'None taken.' Radek shrugged, adjusting his icepack. 'Was long time ago.'

Mouth snapping shut when McKay came in and approached Radek, Aloysius made a quick signal for everyone to keep their mouths shut about the current discussion until after McKay finished his fussing and left the room. He'd already figured out that McKay was the biggest gossip on Atlantis so for now, they didn't dare discuss anything in his earshot.  
'Ouch, okay you have a very good reason not to come into work this afternoon.' Rodney nodded, holding out the case. 'Here, not that they'll sit properly with that swelling.'  
'Thank you Rodney.' Radek smiled, accepting the case and setting it in his lap. 'I will survive, like always. Is not so bad, have taken worse in my life. Could have been worse, Rufus saved me from lunatic with knife.'  
'Oh god, is he…?' Rodney blanched, looking around quickly.  
'In surgery to get the knife taken out of his back.' Aloysius shrugged, glancing towards the OR doors. 'Typical of him, his twentieth knife wound comes saving an innocent.'  
'Twenty knife wounds?' Rodney balked, turning to stare at Aloysius. 'I thought he was just a scientist, not a super hero.'  
'Not a super hero, just a former soldier with a lot he doesn't talk about.' Shane grinned, looking up from the tablet he was using. 'Don't push him Rodney, he'll let you know his story when he's ready to tell it.'  
'I had already figured that out.' Rodney bristled, shaking his head quickly. 'I'm stuck on the fact he's had twenty knife injuries.'  
'That's only the start of it, Rodney. This injury makes 184 scars across his hide. I've got 381, hazard of the job.' Aloysius shrugged, holding up his hands to reveal the network of scars over his knuckles. 'I do my best to keep him out of harms way but it doesn't always work.'  
'Like today.' Radek nodded, looking down at his own knuckles.  
'Yeah like today.' Aloysius grinned, shoving his hands back in his pockets. 'It wasn't meant to happen like this, you'll just have to manage without the two of them for a few days Rodney.'  
'I'll make it work.' Rodney sighed, looking lost for a moment. 'Well I guess I'd better go.'  
'Thank you again Rodney.' Radek smiled, getting comfortable and trying to relax.

Waiting until McKay was well out of earshot, Aloysius went back to pacing as he tried to make sense of what they'd learned. Nothing made a lot of sense really, there were too many variables for Aloysius to make a clear judgement on what was causing all this animosity between the Marines and the civilians. He wasn't even sure if there was a logical connection between the twelve Marines that had learned a brutal lesson today.  
'There's one thing I still don't get.' Buck sighed, joining the group and leaning back against the wall. 'Why haven't they had a go at McKay?'  
'McKay has a big mouth. He'd tell Sheppard and then Sheppard would come down hard on the Marines.' Shane shrugged, fully aware of the friendship between Rodney and John.  
'That makes a sickening kind of sense.' Aloysius agreed, shaking his head slowly. 'Is there anything that ties the victims together, aside from the civilian aspect?'  
'Is long step but accents?' Radek suggested, looking up at Aloysius with a faint smile.

Blinking slowly as he let that little nugget of information sink into his brain and connect up with a few other considerations, Aloysius nodded slowly as he put the pieces together in his head. The idea of accents being the trigger helped to fit a few more pieces together but it still didn't fully explain the full extent of this mess.  
'Accents makes some sense but it still doesn't cover everyone. Some of those who were beaten are American, so there's got to be something else.' Aloysius nodded, trying to ignore the headache building behind his eyes.  
'I think I've got something here.' Shane declared, holding out his tablet to Aloysius. 'Without the names of the guys involved in the third attack I can't be sure but it's a good start.'  
'What the hell? Are you sure about this?' Aloysius blinked, staring at the screen.  
'As sure as I can be.' Shane confirmed, running one hand through his hair.  
'What did you find?' Mother asked, leaning forward a little.  
'The connection isn't with the victims, it's the attackers.' Aloysius replied, looking up from the screen. 'According to this, all of the identified attackers were born and raised in a small area in southern Alabama. Redneck country.'  
'Quick, check to see if they're all related.' Mother smirked, looking around slowly.  
'What is redneck country?' Radek asked, trying to follow the conversation instead of sleeping.  
'Redneck country is where a lot of rednecks live. Rednecks are regarded as unintelligent, gun toting, cigarette smoking folk.' Buck shrugged, getting up and heading to check on the other civilians they'd rescued.  
'I'll need some time to collate the data but it looks like we might be onto something here.' Aloysius noted, gathering up Intel and emailing it to his private computer. 'Maintain your vigil, I've got a few other leads I need to chase.'  
'Want some backup?' Shane asked, accepting the tablet back.  
'Nah, I'll be fine on my own.' Aloysius grinned, straightening his glasses and heading for the door quickly. 'I need you to protect the civilians here and make sure Rufus doesn't do anything stupid.'  
'Copy that.' Shane nodded, settling back in the chair and continuing his research.

~^~^~^~^~

Swallowing quickly and groaning as he shifted, Rufus blearily opened one eye and looked around. The last thing he clearly remembered was tackling someone threatening Radek with a knife but everything after that was a blurry haze of pain, fear and distress.  
'Carson, he's awake.' Radek's voice, helping him claw his way out of the drugged haze in his head.  
'You okay, Radek?' Rufus asked, slurring a little as he shifted into a slightly more comfortable position on the uncomfortable bed.  
'Ano, I am fine Rufus. A little bruised and concussed but alive.' Radek replied, reaching out to touch his hand lightly. 'Am far more concerned about you, my friend.'  
'Ah, how are ye feeling lad?' Carson asked, one hand automatically curling around Rufus' wrist.  
'Like I just had minor surgery.' Rufus sighed, tentatively checking his range of motion.  
'Minor? Ye had a knife buried six inches in yer back.' Carson spluttered, shocked by how casual Rufus was about it.  
'Yeah and that's the twentieth time someone has tried that.' Rufus chuckled, not really bothered by the injury. 'Well, nineteenth I guess. Only had one person try to run me through with a sword.'  
'Well that's different.' Radek remarked, astounded by the calm nature of Rufus' words. 'Thought swords were out of fashion.'  
'Blame the US military, they give all their officers dress swords. A fellow Lieutenant took offence to me being declared the best pilot in our training group and he went a little crazy. In through the back, partially severed the kidney on the right side and came out the front.' Rufus explained, adjusting the pillow under his head. 'At least some good came out of it, doctors were able to save my kidney and implant it in a kid who desperately needed it. Was just luck that we were in the same hospital, my kidney wasn't going to survive a long trip and still be viable.'  
'Aye, I've heard stories like that before. Ye were both verra lucky.' Carson agreed, starting to ease away the dressings wrapped around his shoulder. 'But that's no reason to be foolish with yer health. Yer under my care now, lad, and I don't want to hear yer takin' stupid risks.'  
'My life is nothing but stupid risks Carson. You've met Aloysius after all.' Rufus smirked, his mood lifting at the snort of amusement from Radek. 'However I will try to tone it back on the insanely stupid risks.'  
'I'll take it.' Carson sighed, running his fingers over Rufus' shoulder.  
'That's not to say I won't do it again, Carson. I will do whatever it takes to protect those I care about. That includes the both of you.' Rufus added, twisting his head around to look up at Carson. 'That's what I do, I put my life on the line to protect innocents.'  
'Here I thought you were just a smart man with great timing.' Radek noted, one eyebrow rising sharply as he tapped Rufus' hand.  
'I did time in the Army too, Radek. Joined at eighteen and left at thirty.' Rufus admitted, settling back down again. 'Mostly as a pilot but I did the standard rifleman training as well.'  
'You are a many of many contrasts, Rufus.' Radek grinned, rubbing at his forehead quickly. 'Well now that you are awake, I am going back to my bed.'  
'Goodnight Radek. I'll see you tomorrow.' Rufus nodded, looking up at Carson again. 'Don't give me that look Carson. I'm not going to stand back and let anyone get hurt if I can do anything to protect them. I don't mind adding to my scars, so long as those I care about are safe.'

Rolling over a little so he could grasp Carson's hand lightly in his own, Rufus gently ran his thumb over Carson's knuckles, feeling nothing but smooth skin against his callused thumb tip. Lifting his gaze slowly, he smiled softly as he squeezed Carson's hand tenderly.  
'We all have our duties, Carson. You just have to accept that part of mine is to protect others.' he grinned, watching Carson closely.  
'I dinnae have ta like it though.' Carson sighed, looking down at their joined hands. 'Get some rest lad. Yer restricted to light duties until this heals up.'  
'I kinda figured that would be the case.' Rufus nodded, squeezing Carson's hand again. 'You need to rest too Carson.'  
'I will.' Carson promised, untangling their hands again so he could smooth the clean dressing over Rufus' shoulder. 'I was waiting for ye ta wake up before I went off duty.'  
'I'm okay Carson, I'm not going anywhere until I get clearance from you.' Rufus grinned, settling back down and getting reasonably comfortable.  
'Good lad.' Carson nodded, draping an extra blanket over Rufus. 'Goodnight Rufus.'  
'Night Carson.'


	5. Final Straw

'Well it looks like we were right about the idea this is all redneck related. The twelve men already under surveillance are all related in one way or another. We've also uncovered another eight that are also part of this weird family net, three here on Atlantis and another five still stationed at the SGC. I will create a briefing packet regarding the situation so General Landry can take action regarding those five on earth.' Aloysius continued; staring at the network of relations projected onto the wall of his living room.  
'Are they all involved in the attacks on the civilians?' Shane asked, totally focused on the faces on the wall.  
'At this point, the only one not connected to the attacks here is Jenkins.' Rufus shrugged, using a laser pointer to mark one of the headshots on the wall. 'The smarter option is to get rid of all fifteen before he can harm anyone.'

A week on from his latest stabbing and Rufus was still on light duties, bouncing between lab work and repairing the Raven. He was limited with the repairs though, his injury made it hard for him to manage the heavy tools and equipment he needed to finish restrengthening the frame before installing the wiring. He'd been forced to settle for setting out the wiring on a different jig and testing every wire to make sure the system would work properly.

Technically he probably shouldn't have been part of the planning for the final cleansing of Atlantis, no doubt rounding up and restraining their targets would lead to him reopening the wound on his shoulder. He wasn't deterred though; this needed to be done immediately for the safety of everyone.  
'So how are we gonna handle this?' Mother asked, resting one hand on her belt as she stared at the wall of faces. 'They've got the advantage of numbers.'  
'It's doubtful they know what's really going on so we should be able to get them individually or in small groups.' Buck added, trying to memorise as many faces as possible.  
'Catching them is only half the problem. We still have to get rid of them too.' Aloysius sighed, the sheer numbers rattling him a little. 'I'm happy for you three to help with the captures but when it comes time to dispose of them, Rufus and I will handle that alone.'  
'Fair enough. You're the ones getting paid to hunt them down.' Shane nodded, starting to pace as he considered their options.

Opening his mouth to continue his new plan of attack, Aloysius barely had time to blink before Rufus was on his feet and flying out the door. Blinking in disbelief, he grabbed for his gun belt and took off after Rufus, deeply concerned for what his best friend had just been hit with.  
'Hey, what's the big rush?' he called, sprinting hard to keep up with Rufus.  
'We've got trouble. Lower levels, south pier.' Rufus replied, easily outpacing Aloysius. 'Section 41.'  
'10-4.' Aloysius nodded, dropping back and waiting for the Marines to catch up.

~^~^~^~^~

Refusing to give up despite the odds, Radek fought like a wild cat as his attackers descended on him again. Twisting away as one grabbed his shirt again, Radek heard it rip as he lunged forward and managed to land a stinging blow to the face of one of the blurs around him. Crying out in pain as someone hit him from behind, he staggered and fell just as another of the aggressors launched a heavy kick into his gut.

Fear spiking as he watched Radek hit the floor heavily, Carson struggled valiantly against the two men holding him pinned against one of the random crates scattered around the room. Swearing up a storm, he lashed out with one foot and scored a direct hit to the groin of one, allowing him to break free and start up a rampage of his own. He was normally a peaceful man but he was sick and tired of these bastards thinking they could get the better of him every time.

Letting rip with a string of Czech curses, Radek bucked and twisted frantically as two of the brutes grabbed him by the arms and dragged him towards another of the random crates. Ignoring the growing aches and pains, he continued trying to break their grip even as a third tore away the remnants of his shirt.  
'Quit squirming, commie.' one of them growled, backhanding him brutally.  
'Let me go.' Radek snarled, spitting blood and lurching to the left in an attempt to yank his hand free. 'Leave me alone!'  
'Shut up and do as ya told, commie!' another snapped as dangerously strong hands wrapped around his neck from the front and pulled down. 'Resist and I'll break ya scrawny neck.'

Ducking a punch that most likely would have knocked him senseless, Carson scrambled towards the door, only to get slammed by a freight train and driven into the ground with devastating force. Screaming in agony, he clutched his left arm to his chest, instinctively protecting the break from any further damage.  
'Shoulda just behaved.' someone drawled as hands dragged him to his feet and a crushing grip wrapped around his fractured arm.  
'c'mon, get him over here!' someone else demanded and Carson howled again as the pressure increased on his broken arm.

Panic setting in as someone wrapped a belt around his wrists and pulled it painfully tight, Radek tried desperately to block out the sound of Carson screaming in agony. He was acutely aware of the hands still locked around his neck, fingers pressing viciously against his skin. He couldn't help it, mind automatically calculating the chances of survival if this brute did start squeezing his neck. But even the fear of strangulation couldn't stop him from putting up one last desperate fight when he felt a hand cupping his upturned ass.  
'Bože ne.' he gasped, shuddering in revulsion as he realised what these monsters were planning.

Screaming in agony as he was thrown over another crate and pinned down with an excruciating grip around his broken arm, Carson swallowed quickly in an effort not to throw up from the pain. With no other options left, he sent out his loudest mental scream and hoped to the heavens that Atlantis heard him and responded. Even that provided no comfort though, not when he felt the icy chill of a knife slipping past his waistband. Trembling with a mix of panic and anguish, he couldn't even summon the strength for one last defiant act as his pants were cut away and ripped free.

~^~^~^~^~

Trying super hard not to think about the desperation he could feel from Atlantis, Rufus skidded around the last corner and charged, ripping out his two favourite pistols as he closed the distance. The doors were already opening and he didn't hesitate, twisting around the entrance and making a snap scan of the situation. His blood simultaneously boiled with rage and ran ice cold with fear as he took in the scene.

Radek pinned down over a crate with a much bigger man straddling his head as another raped him and two others stood nearby wanking furiously.

Carson, screaming in agony as one man twisted his arm and another came on his face as a third proceeded to rape the gentle Scot and a fourth stroked his cock as he watched the scene.

Levelling his pistols as he entered the room, Rufus picked his targets carefully. It wouldn't take long for the attackers to realise they had company down here. The first two shots boomed loud, nailing the two current rapists in the head. Shifting his aim, he dropped the two restrainers next, sending the remaining attackers scrambling for weapons. Undeterred, Rufus drew his aim again and killed another with a double tap to the chest. Adjusting his right grip, he slugged another in the jaw and knocked him down for the count. Standing tall, he caught another in the back with two rounds and spun, pistols bucking in his hands as he dropped the last assailant with one in the back and one in the head. 

Sliding to the floor with a weak sob, Radek gasped in pain as he curled up, bringing his knees to his chest and straining against the belt still firm around his wrists. Absolutely disgusted, he choked, shuttered and threw up between quivering, shallow gasps for breath. He couldn't stop shaking, body rebelling against what he'd been forced to endure for no good reason.

Falling off his crate, Carson cried out in agony again as he jarred his arm and collapsed to the chill floor. Completely broken, he clutched his throbbing arm to his chest and wept, thankful that his ordeal was at an end. Curling up as best he could, he shivered and prayed that no one would stumble on him in this condition.

Holstering his pistols quickly, Rufus shouldered out of his long hunt jacket as he approached the two broken men on the floor. Sinking to his knees, he made a quick choice and gently draped his jacket over Carson's battered body. Though he knew it wouldn't be as good, he peeled off his long-sleeved tee and tenderly draped it over Radek's side. Humming softly in an attempt to calm them, he reached over and unwound the belt cutting into Radek's skin, easing it away and softly rubbing at the marks left behind.  
'Rufus?' Carson gasped, lifting his head fractionally. 'tha' ye?'  
'I'm sorry I took so long to get here.' Rufus offered, gently running his fingers through Carson's hair. 'I'm so sorry this happened.'  
'You pr'mised.' Radek whimpered, one eye cracking open weakly.  
'I know. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you.' Rufus nodded, whipping up his pistol when he heard someone else approaching. 'Identify yourself before I blow ya head off!'  
'Whoa, easy now buddy. It's us.' Aloysius returned, stopping in the corridor. 'Status?'  
'Eight bogies. Seven dead, one incapacitated.' Rufus replied, turning his attention back to the two men beside him. 'Two civilians injured.'  
'Civilian IDs?' Aloysius requested, poking his head around the door.  
'Ne, prosím.' Radek whispered, shivering and trying to curl up tighter.  
'They would prefer no ID recorded.' Rufus insisted, glancing towards the door. 'You got your coat?'  
'Yeah.' Aloysius confirmed, appearing in the doorway and turning his back. 'Guide me back.'  
'Fifteen steps straight back. There's a crate, leave it there.' Rufus directed, trying to keep both injured men calm. 'The incapacitated one is on your left, ten steps inside the room.'  
'Copy that. I'll grab him on the way out.' Aloysius nodded, backing into the room slowly.

Reaching out to snag the coat as soon as Aloysius dropped it, Rufus draped it over Radek and reclaimed his shirt. Pulling it on quickly, he glanced over to see Aloysius dragging the one surviving attacker out by his ankles.  
'I…can't let me staff…' Carson gasped, breaking down and sobbing again.  
'Shh, one step at a time Carson. First we need to get you both out of here so the clean up crew can dispose of the bodies.' Rufus uttered, doing his best to keep them calm. 'Anything else can wait until after you're safely away from here.'  
'Walking…will be…painful.' Radek groaned; clutching at the well worn coat draped over him.  
'Carrying will probably hurt too.' Rufus warned, tucking the coat tighter around Radek. 'I can do it but I need to know you trust me enough.'  
'Ye…killed them?' Carson asked, groaning in pain as he shifted.  
'Most of 'em. The one that survived ain't a threat, I already broke his hand and now his jaw is probably in pieces.' Rufus nodded, resting one hand on Carson's shoulder. 'This time, you can be sure they won't hurt you again. Eight of the fifteen attackers are now gone and it won't take long for the remaining seven to be taken into custody.'  
'You promise they are no longer threat?' Radek asked, tentatively trying to wriggle closer.  
'By tonight, they will all be dead and gone, Radek. We were already planning on how to get rid of them, today was meant to be capture day and tomorrow the end of the threat.' Rufus promised, fully expecting a confrontation later about his choice of words.  
'Prosím.' Radek whispered, breaking down into helpless sobbing again.  
'Just get us out of here.' Carson agreed, choking on a groan as he started to weep.

Thinking it over carefully, Rufus nodded slowly as he tried to figure out how to move the pair safely out of this horror room to somewhere safer. He didn't doubt that he could carry them both, he was strong enough for that but he was deeply concerned about causing any further harm.  
'Okay, let's start simple. Can you wriggle into the coats?' he asked, looking around for anything that might be helpful in this situation.  
'Ano, I can do that.' Radek uttered, weakly sitting up a little and starting to struggle into Knight's heavy coat.  
'Nay hurts too much.' Carson groaned, face screwing up in pain. 'Broke me arm.'  
'Shh, I'll take care of you.' Rufus soothed, pulling off his shirt again and pulling his knife. 'Just relax, I've got you.'

Slicing through the shoulder seams and ripping the shirt apart, he folded the main part into a pad and slowly lifted the heavy coat covering Carson. Refolding the cloth carefully, he unbuckled his knife scabbard and sheathed the blade again before placing it on Carson's misshapen arm.  
'This is going to hurt Carson. Just keep breathing.' Rufus soothed, starting to carefully work the pad under Carson's arm.  
'I'm ready.' Carson groaned, looking up at Rufus with desperation in his eyes.  
'Okay, here we go.' Rufus nodded, pulling the padding tight around the knife and the broken bones.  
'Nay, not ready.' Carson choked, good hand digging into Rufus' knee. 'That hurts so bad.'  
'You're through the worst Carson.' Rufus grinned, patting his good hand lightly before using the removed sleeves to secure the padding into place and create a sling. 'That's it, you're all done.'  
'What now?' Carson mumbled, clutching his broken arm to his chest.  
'Can you sit up? Let's get you covered up.' Rufus guided, turning to check on Radek. 'You managing alright there Radek?'  
'Uh, maybe not. Hurts too much to sit up.' Radek confessed, half in the coat but clearly struggling to manage the rest.  
'Right, just let me get Carson wrapped up and then I'll help you.' Rufus grinned, holding the coat closed as he helped Carson up onto his knees. 'You steady there?'  
'Aye, steady enough.' Carson nodded, clutching at the crate beside him for balance. 'Dinnae feel so good though.'  
'Alright, just stay there for the moment. We'll be out of here real soon.' Rufus replied; turning his attention to getting Radek all wrapped up in Knight's coat.

Easing to his feet, Rufus very gingerly helped the injured pair to their feet and held them steady until their battered muscles adjusted. Careful not to cause any further harm and tucking Carson in against his left side to better protect his injured arm, he crouched a little and braced for the lift.  
'You're going to have to help support each other.' Rufus grinned, wrapping his arms around their thighs and getting a firm grip on the coats.  
'Right, easy enough.' Carson nodded, getting his hand free of the sleeve and reaching out to grab Radek's arm securely.  
'Here we go.' Rufus warned, tightening his grip a little more and straightening up.  
'Bloody hell.' Carson yelped; wobbling for a moment before Radek pulled him back in close. 'I will never get used ta how easily ye can do that.'  
'Nothing to it.' Rufus chuckled, heading for the door calmly. 'Atlantis, I need a way to get someplace safe without anyone seeing anything.'  
'Noses to the wall.' Aloysius directed, still waiting outside the room. Take care 'we'll take care of the clean up, buddy. Go on, get them to safety.'  
'Copy that, Boss.' Rufus nodded, stepping past the quartet in the corridor and starting the long trek to safety.

~^~^~^~^~

Changing his plan on the fly once the bodies were piled up and the still unconscious man cuffed to two of the corpses, Aloysius made the call to collect the remaining troublemakers so they could all be dealt with together. It wasn't his standard way to solve the problem but with Rufus otherwise occupied and a growing concern of further attacks, he went with it and dispatched the Marines to capture five of the seven.

Feeling more comfortable now that he was getting proactive, Aloysius raced through the more densely occupied areas of the city on the tail of his first proper target. Somehow the target had become aware of the Bounty Hunters in Atlantis and was doing his best to stay out of Aloysius' sight. That wasn't a big problem though, Aloysius wasn't about to let this particular asshole get away with what he'd done.

Keeping the little rat bastard in his sight, Aloysius darted around another corner and made a snap judgement. Closing the distance fast, he dropped to the floor and skidded between McKay's legs, narrowly avoiding Sheppard and Ronon as he sprang back up and broke back into a flat sprint. Left hand snapping out to grab a protrusion on the wall, he flicked around the next corner and briefly glanced at the modified life signs detector strapped to his forearm.

Spotting Teyla ahead, he made another snap choice and moved to the side, planting one foot on a random bench installed in the corridor. Kicking off, he launched into a forward flip and twisted in midair, waving to Teyla on his way over her head. Landing lightly, he raced off to the left, a full 270 degrees from the direction he'd been facing when he entered the flip.

Trying not to think about the surprised look he'd caught on Teyla's face, Aloysius zipped around another corner and spotted his target. Lip curling into a smirk, he poured on the last ounce of speed he had and grabbed his handcuffs out of their usual pocket. Launching at the last moment, he slammed into his target and took him to the floor in a tangle of limbs. Taking full advantage of the situation, he got the bastard cuffed before they'd even stopped skidding across the floor.

Shoving his glasses back up as he clambered to his feet; Aloysius grabbed his target roughly by the arm and dragged him to his feet. There was no escaping the backwoods hick upbringing of this particular guy, especially not with a name like that.  
'Sergeant Billy-Bob Winkle, you're under arrest.'  
'Fer what?' he drawled, yanking against Aloysius grip.  
'Boy, if you don't know why then you're dumber than you look.' Aloysius sighed, tightening his grip and heading for the door. 'We know what you've been up to.'  
'I ain't done nothin'.' Billy-Bob protested, still fighting against Aloysius' strength.  
'Oh boy, it's going to be a long day.' Aloysius groaned, giving him a firm shove and drawing his pistol. 'Walk or I'll blow your balls off.'  
'Alright! Alright!' Billy-Bob grumbled, stumbling his way down the corridor.  
'Whew, gonna need a breath test once this is over.' Aloysius muttered, shoving his captive again.

Ignoring everyone calling for his attention, Aloysius continued manhandling his target towards the Jumper bay. At least he didn't need to worry about his target escaping; Mother was on guard at one of the Jumpers with three of the targets already inside.   
'Knight, what's going on here? We're getting reports that Schofield, Newman and Riley are attacking fellow Marines.' Elizabeth called, hurrying out to intercept him.  
'Nothing to worry about Dr Weir. It's all to do with that stuff we discussed when I first arrived.' Aloysius replied, getting a firm grip of Billy-Bob's arm. 'I emailed you a prelim report this morning but things have been a little crazy since after breakfast so I haven't had a chance to send updates.'  
'Give me the basics.' Elizabeth requested, glancing at Billy-Bob for a moment.  
'Twenty men were involved. Fifteen men here and five on earth. Twelve have been neutralised, we're working on the last three. Once we have all fifteen, we'll remove them from Atlantis permanently.' Aloysius briefed, yanking his target back when he tried to run. 'I'll get you the final report as soon as the job is done, Dr Weir. Right now, time is of the essence.'  
'Of course. As you were.' she nodded, moving off to the side.  
'I'll do my best to get that report to you today.' Aloysius promised, shoving his target towards the stairs. 'Just don't be surprised if a Jumper heads out in an unusual direction.'  
'Thanks for letting me know, Mr Knight.' she smiled, heading back towards her office.

Delivering Sergeant Winkle to the Jumper, Knight paused briefly to warn Mother to keep her distance from the man lest she wind up tipsy from the fumes. Satisfied that she could control the situation, he headed out after his second target as Shane escorted Lieutenant Atkinson into the room. Shoving Atkinson into the Jumper, Shane took over the guard duties and sent Mother out to capture her second target.

~^~^~^~^~

Taking a moment to scrub one hand through his hair, Rufus cut through the heavy thread he was using and sat back to examine his handiwork. It wasn't pretty but it would do until he had a chance to get Radek and Carson some of their own clothes.  
'You still with me Radek?' he asked, putting the sewing needle away.  
'Ano. Just tired, Rufus.' Radek nodded, shifting awkwardly on the couch.  
'Alright, let's get you tucked up in bed.' Rufus grinned, tenderly picking Radek up and carrying him towards the bed.

Sinking to one knee, he gently settled Radek on the left side of the huge bed and carefully eased the warm blankets over him. Tucking the edges in loosely, he took a huge risk and leant over to press a soft kiss to Radek's temple.  
'Try and get some rest Radek. I'll be right here if you need anything.' he uttered, getting up and setting three water bottles on the bedside table.  
'I…please do not torment me further.' Radek sighed, looking up at Rufus sadly.  
'That's not my intention, Radek.' Rufus replied, perching on the edge of the bed. 'I told you once that I care and promised I'd treat you right if you gave me a chance.'  
'I thought you were joking.' Radek whispered, reaching out to take Rufus' hand lightly. 'I am not exactly a…handsome man.'  
'Looks don't bother me, Radek, they never have.' Rufus shrugged, patting Radek's hand lightly. 'Get some rest; we can talk about this when you're feeling better.'  
'Thank you Rufus.' Radek nodded, settling back down and clutching at the extra pillow Rufus handed him. 'You are a good friend.'

Leaving Radek to rest, Rufus turned his attention back to Carson, half curled up in the overstuffed armchair he'd appropriated from another room. Grabbing a special kit from the pile stacked against the wall, he padded over to crouch in front of Carson.  
'Those painkillers helping any?' he asked softly, reaching up to wipe away Carson's tears.  
'Not really.' Carson uttered, lifting his gaze slowly. 'Still hurts.'  
'I've got some stronger meds but it might be a good idea to get you cleaned up and ready for bed before I give you those. Just in case they knock you out completely.' Rufus nodded, doing his best to keep Carson calm and relaxed. 'I found a better support for your arm too.'  
'Ye…who did ye tell?' Carson asked, pulling away sharply and gasping his pain as he moved wrong. 'Ye promised.'  
'I didn't tell anyone anything Carson.' Rufus reassured him, ripping open the package he'd grabbed and reaching inside. 'We had these made just in case something went wrong on the job.'

Pulling out the two halves of the pre-made cast, Rufus held them out for Carson to examine closely before untying the knot resting against Carson's shoulder and gently lowering his injured arm. Watching for any problems, he unbound the hasty support and carefully lifted his knife away before reaching for the medical scanner he'd borrowed.  
'Why would ye have something like this?' Carson asked, still examining the pre-made cast.  
'Working with Aloysius, I've learned to be prepared for any situation. We took to stocking a full set of pre-made casts for each of us, just in case something happened and we couldn't get medical attention quickly.' Rufus explained, most of his focus on the scanner screen. 'If I'm reading this right, it's a simple fracture.'  
'Let me see.' Carson insisted, setting the cast in his lap and leaning forward a little to peer at the screen. 'Aye, I can nae see any other damage.'  
'I can do this Carson; it's not the first time I've had to rest a broken bone in a hotel suite. I'll take care of you; it's going to be okay.' Rufus coaxed, carefully supporting the injury. 'It's going to take time but I'll be with you every step of the way.'

Relaxing a little more when Carson gave him a tentative nod, Rufus picked up the lower half of the cast and eased his supporting hand away as he positioned the cast to check the fit. By sheer luck, the cast fit Carson's arm remarkably well considering it had been originally been moulded around Aloysius' arm. Reaching into the bag against his thigh, Rufus slipped the cast away and delicately wrapped Carson's arm with padding before once again positioning the cast.  
'How's that feel?' he asked, guiding Carson to hold the cast in position.  
'So far so good.' Carson offered, watching closely as Rufus applied a layer of glue to the edges of the other cast half. 'I take it this was nae made fer ye.'  
'Nah, this was cast for Aloysius. Mine are longer and wider.' Rufus grinned, carefully lining up two halves and pressing them together. 'I'm actually kind of surprised that this fits so neatly. Thought I'd have to improvise.'  
'This is a verra good idea.' Carson continued, voice wavering as he looked away quickly. 'What am I gonna tell my staff?'  
'You don't need to worry about that right now Carson. Right now, let's just focus on getting you cleaned up, dressed and safely into bed. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.' Rufus guided, reaching up to wipe Carson's face again. 'You don't have to tell them anything you don't want to.'  
'I can nae just disappear fer days on end.' Carson protested, starting to panic again. 'I have ta get back ta work.'  
'Carson, calm down. Getting all worked up isn't going to fix this.' Rufus tried, sitting up and gently guiding Carson into a hug. 'Just breathe; we'll get through this together.'  
'How?' Carson choked, clutching at Rufus' shirt in desperation for an anchor.  
'Look, we'll have to tell Dr Weir this happened. She's got a right to know why you've both suddenly disappeared. She'll make it clear to your staff that you're not feeling well and need some time to recover. They'll manage without you for a little while, they're all competent people.' Rufus suggested, rubbing soothing circles on Carson's back. 'she'll have to tell Rodney the same thing, Radek's clearly not up to getting back to the labs and I'm not going to leave you two on your own just in case something goes wrong.'

Easing his grip when he felt Carson relax, Rufus sat back a little and tenderly lifted Carson's chin so he could look into those tearful blue eyes. Summoning a soft smile, he wiped Carson's face with his sleeve and smoothed out his hair.  
'Do we really have ta tell Dr Weir?' Carson asked, trembling with fear and shame.  
'Only about the assaults and your subsequent injury. The rape is personal; no one else needs to know anything about that. We'll keep that horror just between the three of us.' Rufus promised; glancing towards the bed to make sure Radek was resting.  
'I get the feeling ye've had an experience like this.' Carson uttered, sniffing weakly as he clutched his aching arm to his chest.  
'I do, I was attacked in a similar way many years ago. I don't talk about it much, it's been years but I still get nightmares sometimes.' Rufus admitted, ducking his head for a moment. 'Now let's just keep that little detail real quiet.'  
'Of course.' Carson nodded, resting his good hand on Rufus' shoulder. 'I really need ta clean up.'  
'Will you settle for a sponge bath?' Rufus asked, shoving the past out of his mind and focusing on Carson's needs. 'I'm not sure you'd be steady enough for a proper shower.'  
'Aye, a sponge bath will do nicely. Me legs are still like jello.' Carson agreed, trying to ignore the way his hands were shaking.  
'Alright, one sponge bath coming up.' Rufus chuckled, shifting so he could wrap one arm around Carson's back. 'You ready to take that coat off?'  
'Aye, that's manageable.' Carson nodded, fumbling the last few buttons holding the coat closed and pushing it off.

Mindful of causing further pain, Rufus gently scooped Carson up and stood, keeping his step light in an attempt not to wake Radek. Entering the bathroom, he grinned at the sight of the sink filled with faintly steaming water and settled on the stool he kept handy. Mostly he used the stool to shave since the mirror was a little too low for him to see everything when he was standing. Cradling Carson tenderly and careful not to apply pressure to any of his injuries, he wrung out the waiting cloth and started trying to wash away the darkness.

~^~^~^~^~

Calm and collected, Aloysius finished tying off the last knot and stood back to admire his handiwork. It wasn't the best set up but it would be enough to put an end to this nightmare for Atlantis and all who lived within the city. At this point, he was beyond caring. He just wanted this over with so he could collect the money and get back to earth. This job was getting to him, what with the change in galaxy and the aliens he'd already encountered.  
'We're coming up on the spot Rufus tagged.' Shane called, thumping on the bulkhead door behind him. 'Ready back there?'  
'Just about.' Aloysius replied, approaching the bound prisoners again.

Each one of the living perpetrators was bound to at least two of the bodies in a tangle mess of flex cuffs, zip ties and some lengths of unneeded cable he'd scrounged up. The plan was simple enough; drop the bundled group out the back door and leave them to drown in the deepest part of the ocean, far away from any water currents that might take the bodies close to Atlantis or the mainland.  
'Alright, by your mark.' Shane confirmed, oblivious to what Aloysius was planning.  
'Copy.' Aloysius nodded, unfazed by the angry glares he was getting.

Counting the dogtags hanging from his vest, he frowned when he came up one short and started searching for the last set. Naturally his prisoners objected, trying to bite his reaching hands but he was faster and soon retrieved the last set from around Winkle's neck. Pulling out his digital camera, he took a few more photos of the bound group, making sure to get every face at least three times as he circled slowly.  
'Ya can't do this!' someone protested from the middle of the bound huddle.  
'Actually, I can.' Aloysius shrugged, securing his camera and moving back past the group. 'Mark in five…four…'

Getting a firm grip on the supply nets secured to the ceiling of the Jumper, he kicked the door into the cockpit sharply and braced for the high speed manoeuvre Shane had suggested. Grunting at the strain building in his shoulders as the Jumper suddenly went vertical, Aloysius grinned faintly as the back hatch opened and the helplessly bound group simply slid out and plunged into the icy ocean below.  
'Clean drop! Let's get out of here.' Aloysius called, relaxing his grip as the Jumper levelled out and the hatch snapped shut.  
'What happens now?' Shane asked, turning to look at Aloysius.  
'I give my report to Dr Weir, along with the evidence and get the hell out of this place.' Aloysius shrugged, dropping into the last empty chair in the cockpit.  
'You're not staying?' Mother asked, thinking about how happy Rufus seemed now.  
'There's still plenty of work back home.' Aloysius snorted, scrubbing one hand through his hair.  
'Haven't you noticed how happy Rufus is here?' Buck asked, turning around in the co-pilot's chair.  
'I've been a little busy figuring out the targets.' Aloysius shrugged. 'He's just faking it anyway, you know, blending in and earning trust.'  
'No, I don't think so. While you were busy chasing leads, we've been watching out for Rufus like we promised to and he's really settled into Atlantis. He's been making friends and getting involved with everything he possibly can.' Shane corrected, turning the Jumper back towards Atlantis. 'I think you should talk to him before you make any decisions about leaving.'  
'It's not going to be our choice if we leave. We're here on the orders of the IOA. If they order us back to earth, we have to go.' Aloysius sighed, shaking his head slowly. 'Shit, he's going to be pissed if we have to leave.'  
'Since he's good with the ATA stuff, maybe they'll let him stay.' Mother suggested, studying the floor intently as she spoke. 'Not sure about you though.'  
'I'll figure something out.' Aloysius muttered, not really sure he could come up with a solution to this situation. 'Not sure what though.'

~^~^~^~^~

Calmed by the rhythm of peaceful breathing coming from his bed, Rufus twisted around to make sure the pair were sleeping properly before getting back to work on the scattered components spread across his desk. It was just his luck that one of the most critical systems for the Raven had been damaged in transit, leaving him to rebuild the complex circuitry if he ever wanted the stealth systems back in full working order. At this point, he wasn't sure those systems would help against the Wraith threat but he still wanted them functional just in case.

Cracking his back quickly, he readjusted his magnifying glasses and picked up his soldering iron again. Glancing at the diagrams, he started piecing together another of the control boards he needed. He'd already rebuilt two of the boards but he still had seven boards to rebuild before wiring everything together and reinstalling it in his Raven. He really hoped that Radek was feeling up to helping with that installation, the location was tight and awkward for Rufus to access.

Securing another connection, Rufus paused when Atlantis calmly requested his attention and put the soldering iron down as he responded to her. She was getting much better at telling him what she wanted him to know, mostly with pictures and sometimes with sensations. This time she simply showed him an image of Dr Weir approaching his quarters with a tablet in hand.  
'Ah, thank you my dear. I thought she'd come by after she read the report. I'll meet her at the door.' he nodded, checking on Radek and Carson again.

Making a few more connections, he put down his tools again when Atlantis let him know that Elizabeth was getting close to the door. Getting up, he checked his temporary roommates were still sleeping peacefully and headed to the door. Timing it perfectly, he requested the doors open just as she was reaching for the chime.  
'Atlantis told you I was coming, didn't she?' Weir asked, looking up at him with a faint smile.  
'She thought it would be less disruptive.' Rufus nodded, moving aside to let her in. 'please keep your voice down. They're finally sleeping peacefully.'  
'Of course. I just have a few questions.' Elizabeth replied, heading towards the couch.  
'I thought I was pretty thorough with the report.' Rufus shrugged, sinking down beside her.  
'You were, I am impressed with how thorough you were.' she agreed, bringing up the report on her tablet. 'But there are some inconsistencies.'  
'Dr Weir, let me be very clear. There are some things that don't belong in formal reports or files. I'm no psychiatrist, not even a psychologist; I'm just a guy with a whole lot of real world experience. It was hard enough for them both to allow the report I sent you, they've both suffered so much and just want to put this all behind them.' Rufus warned, glancing towards the bed again.  
'Calm down, Mr McKenzie. I have no idea why you're so worked up.' Elizabeth tried, definitely surprised by his reaction.  
'Look, it's simple. Everything they want anyone else to know is written in my report. Even if you suspect there is more, I urge you to keep your questions to yourself. Some things in life, well they need to be kept private. The only way to ensure that secret is safe is to keep it from all records and keep it safe between the three of us.' Rufus explained, shaking his head slowly.  
'So there is something missing from the report?' Elizabeth asked, looking down at the report again.  
'Stop it Elizabeth.' Rufus growled, narrowing his eyes. 'Look, I'll make this real simple. You keep digging and you'll eventually reveal the truth. You do that and one of two things will happen. Best case, they take a risk and abandon the city. Worst case, they find a quiet corner of the city and commit suicide.'  
'Those are the only choices?' Elizabeth questioned, attention snapping to Rufus' face.  
'Given the situation, those are the two choices. It's highly unlikely they would consider returning to earth if their secret is revealed. The shame would follow them through that gate. Best to just leave it alone and let them decide if they ever want to share it with you.' Rufus confirmed, head snapping around at a whimper from the bed.

Heaving to his feet and turning, Rufus crossed the room in two steps and dropped to one knee beside the bed, completely ignoring Elizabeth as he reached out to rest one hand on Carson's shoulder lightly. With a god awful scream, Carson bolted up in the bed, clutching his injured arm to his chest as he looked around frantically.  
'Shh, it's just a nightmare Carson. It's okay, you're safe here. I've got you; no one can hurt you anymore.' Rufus soothed, gently wrapping Carson up in a supportive hug. 'I'll protect you, always.'  
'Rufus?' Carson uttered, shaking like a leaf as he clung to Rufus' shoulder. 'God, it felt so real.'  
'It will for a while, Carson. You can pull through, I'll be right here every step of the way.' Rufus nodded, rocking slowly as he stroked Carson's hair. 'Dr Weir is here, she wanted to be sure you're both okay.'  
'Ne, far from okay.' Radek mumbled, shifting on the other side of the bed. 'It hurts still.'  
'I put painkillers and water on the bedside table, Radek.' Rufus guided, unwilling to let go of Carson just yet. 'Can you reach them?'  
'I think so.' Radek nodded, hissing in pain as he rolled over and reached for the medication on the table. 'One or two?'  
'Take two; they're strong so that should let you get a couple hours sleep.' Rufus directed, easing his grip on Carson. 'Feel better?'  
'A little.' Carson uttered, struggling to meet Rufus' gaze. 'Hurts so much.'  
'It will get better, I promise.' Rufus grinned, reaching for the painkillers he'd left on this side of the bed. 'I could get you a sedative if you prefer.'  
'No, no' tonight. Tomorrow night if I'm still not sleeping right.' Carson decided, accepting the pills Rufus handed him and washing them down quickly.

Guiding Carson back down as he relaxed, Rufus hummed softly as he repositioned a spare pillow under his injured arm. Smoothing out the bedding again and making sure Carson was comfortable, he circled the bed and took the water bottle from Radek's shaking hand. Putting the bottle aside, he gently guided Radek back down and tucked him in safely.  
'I'll leave you to your vigil.' Elizabeth offered, getting up and heading for the door. 'I hope you're both feeling better soon.'

~^~^~^~^~

Making sure he had everything he needed, Aloysius calmly made his way back to Elizabeth's office. He'd already asked that John and Elizabeth meet him there for the debrief and double checked that there was nothing tying Shane, Mother or Buck to what had been done. He hated these formal post job reports; he much preferred to just hand over the required proof and move on to another job. That was one good reason for going back to earth; they always had a steady stream of work.

Mind drifting to the conversation in the Jumper, Aloysius sighed softly as he considered what he'd been ignoring. He really should have seen this, should have noticed that Rufus was putting down roots and settling into the routines of this incredible city. He'd been blinded by the job at hand though and missed all the signs. Now he needed to figure out if there was any way they could stay on Atlantis. He really didn't want to be the one to tell Rufus they had to leave.

Pausing for a moment to put those thoughts back in their respective boxes securely, he did one last check that he had all his evidence before entering the office and stopping in front of the desk. Calm, confident and respectful, he kept his gaze focused on a point between his employers as he prepared for any questions they might have.  
'The job was a lot more complex than you led us to believe. Through the course of our investigation, we uncovered a complex and wide reaching conspiracy against the civilians of Atlantis. Under the pretence of Mandatory Combat Training, they were able to cause untold harm to the civilians of Atlantis. This included severe beatings, mock escape and evasion scenarios, torture and suspected rape. For the sake of the victims, we kept our investigation light on interviews and heavy on tracking down suspects.' he started, gaze flicking to Elizabeth when she gasped softly.  
'How many people were involved?' Sheppard asked, moving closer to Elizabeth.  
'The exact number of victims is unknown. What we do know is that there were fifteen targets on Atlantis and another potential five still in the SGC and awaiting their chances to come to Atlantis.' Aloysius offered, opening one of the pouches on his belt and producing a USB drive. 'the files of the remaining five threats are on here, it would be wise to inform the SGC of the threat as soon as possible so they can stop these five getting to Atlantis.'  
'I'll include your findings in the next data burst to earth.' Elizabeth nodded, accepting the USB and looking at it for a moment. 'How did this happen? Our vetting process should have stopped this.'  
'I'm not done yet, Dr Weir.' Aloysius sighed, dropping his gaze for a moment. 'We also discovered that all twenty targets are closely related. Never more than a gap of being second cousins. We also confirmed that they all came from a small area in southern Alabama. Best estimate, we're talking about an area of approximately fifty square miles.'

Opening one of the pockets in his pants, he lifted out the bundle of dogtags and held them out to Sheppard. He'd gone through and cleaned them all, removing the blood and grime so they were easily read and ready for storage or returning to the families.  
'As promised, I collected the tags of each attacker before removing them from the city. I leave it up to you what happens to the tags now.' he shrugged, draping them over John's outstretched hand.  
'I'll take care of them.' John nodded; looking at some of the tags he'd been handed. 'I never would have suspected these guys.'  
'That's the scary part; no one could have predicted this. Sixteen different surnames made things tricky but they made multiple attempts to disguise the fact they're all related.' Aloysius sighed, opening another pocket and pulling out a sheaf of Polaroid photos. 'As you requested; proof of death photos. You can rest assured that the perpetrators will never be seen on Atlantis or Earth again.'  
'What did you do with them?' Sheppard asked, leaning closer to look at the photos.  
'Are you sure you want to know, Colonel. Most of my employers prefer not to know the intimate details of a job.' Aloysius warned, watching Elizabeth closely as she continued flicking through the images. 'Dr Weir has already indicated that she has no wish to know the details.'  
'Are you absolutely sure they can't come back?' Elizabeth asked, handing the photo to John.  
'Yes Ma'am, I can give you my personal guarantee that they will never make it back to Atlantis.' Aloysius promised, thinking for a moment. 'With help from the oceanographic team, we located a suitable drop sight far away from Atlantis and the mainland.'  
'That's good enough for me, Captain.' John nodded, holding up the photos. 'Have you got digital copies of these, we should probably send them back to the SGC.'  
'On the drive with the files on the other five targets. Those are the only copies though.' Aloysius replied, relaxing his stance a little. 'I also included my full report on the job for your reading and for you to send back to the IOA.'  
'Well, it sounds like you've provided everything that will be needed to ensure the IOA completes your payment.' Elizabeth smiled, looking down at the USB on her drive. 'The supplemental report from Rufus should prove to be very enlightening for the IOA as well.'  
'Yeah, he told me about that report. My only concern is that the IOA will attempt to remove those harmed during this debacle.' Aloysius sighed, thinking about the pained whimpers he'd heard during his discussion with Rufus.  
'We'll make sure that doesn't happen.' Elizabeth promised, glancing at John quickly. 'Is there anything else?'  
'Actually, there is.' Aloysius nodded. 'This is a more personal topic though.'  
'Of course, have a seat.' Elizabeth smiled, sitting down and placing the USB off to the side.

Sinking down with a loose-limbed grace that few ever got to see from him, Aloysius made a quick check that none of his gear was going to get hooked on the chair as he considered how to broach this new topic. He was willing to make a deal to give Rufus his happiness but h wasn't sure the IOA would go for it. He couldn't even be sure that Elizabeth would accept the deal.  
'In our line of work, it's rare that we're in any one place for more than a few days, at most its a couple weeks for a really hard job. This is the first time we've spent a month in any one place and honestly, it has been the most incredible month. Not only because we've had a chance to come to a totally different galaxy but for the changes I've seen in Rufus. This is the first time I've seen him open up and show the world the brilliant, skilled man that he is. This is the first place we've landed where he doesn't have to be on guard for threats. There's no one here out to torment him simply because he's above average height or because he's incredibly smart. None of that matters, he's been accepted and that's worth more than you can imagine.' Aloysius explained, still not sure this plan would work but he was willing to risk everything for it.  
'I had noticed how easily Rufus slipped into the science department. Even Rodney's outbursts don't seem to bother him much.' Elizabeth agreed, leaning forward in her chair.  
'That's not a huge surprise, Dr Weir. He's already lived through a lot worse than Dr McKay on his worst day. Rodney is insulting and condescending. In our Army days, Rufus dealt with cruel pranks and daily beatings because he was so different. Here, his size doesn't matter and he's more than capable of matching McKay and Zelenka on a daily basis.' Aloysius shrugged, quickly shoving thoughts of previous jobs back in their box.  
'Would I be correct in assuming that you are considering renegotiating your deal with the IOA so Rufus could stay here permanently?' Elizabeth asked, head tipping to the side a little.

Chuckling softly as he ducked his head, Aloysius nervously ran one hand through his hair as he reorganised his thoughts. He'd already worked out that Elizabeth was smarter than most of his previous employers. Her quick response just proved how smart she really was.  
'Well, I was more aiming to renegotiate the deal for both our sakes. We're a team; I'd rather stay close to him just in case. He's always been the brains of the operation, I'm the muscle.' he shrugged, gaze flicking towards Sheppard.  
'And what skills can you bring?' Sheppard asked, meeting Aloysius' gaze calmly.  
'Six years in the elite Delta Force and fifteen years as a Bounty Hunter teaches a man a lot of unique skills, Colonel. I'm more than happy to share what I know with your Marine contingent and work with them to improve their basic skills.' Aloysius countered, leaning back in his chair to reveal all the gear and gadgets on his vest. 'Anything can be a weapon; it just takes some lateral thinking. Ask Captain Schofield, he knows what I'm capable of.'  
'I've already heard about some of your misadventures.' Sheppard nodded, relaxing his shoulders a little more. 'I completely agree with Rufus, I will never let the pair of you work together.'  
'Probably a good idea, we've both got explosive habits.' Aloysius agreed, giving a one-shouldered shrug. 'I can teach your personnel dozens of new ways to deal with the Wraith.'  
'You've never faced the Wraith.' Sheppard protested, straightening up again.  
'True but I have faced the absolute worst of humanity. Your biggest problem is the standard firearms and ammunition that you use. A simple switch and a little retraining will see a big improvement in your kill counts in ground combat against Wraith targets.' Aloysius replied, totally confident in his words now.  
'Gentlemen, let's get back on track here.' Elizabeth cut in, her sharp tone drawing their attention.

Ducking his head again, Aloysius carefully schooled his features as he shifted his full attention back to Dr Weir. He needed her support if this was ever going to work but he still wasn't sure if she believed that they were an asset to Atlantis.  
'Dr Weir, consider for a moment what might happen if we leave. There is nothing saying that this sort of nightmare couldn't happen again, be it caused by unnoticed relations of those already dealt with or by a new group to perpetrators that appear from the ranks. At least if we're still here, we can act swiftly to put an end to the problems before it can get out of hand again.' he tried, shooting for innocent concern and praying his aim held.  
'Let's say I allow you to stay, how would you suggest we renegotiate your previous deal?' Elizabeth asked, clearly not falling for his attempt.  
'It's simply really. Rather than a lump sum payment as stated in the original contract, they instead pay us a monthly figure in line with what everyone else on Atlantis gets paid. By my calculations, we would need to be serving on Atlantis for around seven years to equate to the price offered for us to complete the job.' Aloysius explained, watching the shock and disbelief flit across their faces at the figures suggested.  
'That's a lot of money on the table.' John remarked in disbelief.  
'That's only an estimate based on general chatter. The final total depends entirely on where the IOA decides we belong on the pay scale. Of course, I'm not considering danger pay or any of the other benefits that may or may not come with being stationed in another galaxy.' Aloysius continued, reasonably sure he was startling them with his grasp of the situation.  
'You've given this a lot of thought.' Elizabeth commented, shaking her head faintly.  
'Ma'am, I come from old money and now stand as the owner and CEO of the largest non-profit military support network in America. I have to be good with money or my company sinks and the veterans of America have nothing. Besides, as a Bounty Hunter, I make millions in a matter of days at times and need to be able to calculate how long we can survive on what we earn given all our expenses.' Aloysius grinned, feeling far more comfortable with this discussion now. 'Colonel, would I be correct in assuming you've heard of A New Dawn Consolidated Military Support Services?'  
'Uh yeah, I've heard of it. Never had to use their services but I know about them.' John nodded, eyes widening comically. 'I knew I recognised your face from somewhere. I saw your portrait in the lobby when I went to see a friend at one of the centres.'  
'Aren't you concerned for your company if you stay here?' Elizabeth asked, pulling the conversation back on track.  
'Not at all, Ma'am. I trust my staff to run the centres without my constant attention; they've been doing it for nearly 25 years now so they should know how to deal with everything. Besides, before we came here I organised for Dr Jackson to collect my mail and forward it to me here.' Aloysius grinned, totally confident in his staff.  
'Very well, I'll write up a new deal and present it for your signature before sending it through in the next data burst. All going to plan, we should have an answer from the IOA in a few weeks.' Elizabeth agreed, still a little wary of him but he had no doubt he could win her over eventually.  
'I really do appreciate your help, Dr Weir. It would break Rufus' heart to leave this paradise.' Aloysius smiled, getting to his feet carefully so he didn't hook his gear on the chair back. 'I patiently await your final decision.'

Turning sharply and walking away, he had to fight down the urge to crow in delight. He didn't want to get his hopes up just in case the IOA denied them this chance. For now he would keep the secret and wait, there was no point telling Rufus until after they had confirmation of the deal being accepted. Reaching deep for his self control, he kept his walk steady as he headed back to his quarters to relax and wait.


	6. Progress

Finding it much easier to focus on his real assignment now that he wasn't being called on to help Aloysius all the time, Shane was all too happy to spend time in the labs and letting the scientists take full advantage of his ATA capability. He wasn't great with it but he did manage to activate a few things that no one else had been able to convince to work. This also meant he was in just the right place to witness exactly why everyone had been warned to give Dr Zelenka plenty of personal space in the labs.

It was just another day; three weeks after the permanent removal of the trouble makers and Shane had just managed to turn on some device that didn't seem to do anything interesting. Dr Zelenka was examining it, occasionally asking him to try different thoughts in an attempt to understand the device. Then Dr McKay approached, making two mistakes almost simultaneously. First he got too close and then he actually put one hand on Radek's shoulder as he leant in even closer.

Before anyone could blink, Radek let out a holler in Czech and spun, punching McKay fair in the nose with a blow that was clearly powered by his whole body. McKay went down hard, landing in a drunken sprawl on the hard floor. Lunging off his stool, Shane gently nudged Radek back a step as he knelt beside Rodney and checked his vitals.  
'Is he…?' Radek started, rubbing his knuckles lightly as he slumped onto his stool.  
'He's alive, just unconscious.' Shane nodded, deftly flipping Rodney into the recovery position.  
'Medical team to lab one.' Miko requested, coming over to kneel beside Rodney.  
'Thanks Miko.' Shane grinned, turning to Radek. 'It's okay Radek, he was warned to respect your personal space or risk trouble. It's not your fault; he should have paid more attention to the memo that went around.'  
'I do not know what came over me; I am not a man of violence.' Radek sighed, flexing his hand slowly. 'Oww.'  
'Shane to medical team. Kindly bring an icepack or two when you head for the labs.' Shane amended, offering out one hand. 'Will you let me have a look, Radek?'  
"Understood Shane, we'll bring a couple of them." Beckett confirmed, sounding a little confused by the requests. "What happened?"  
'A minor misunderstanding. Dr McKay didn't read the memo about personal space and was knocked out by Dr Zelenka.' Shane briefed, gently examining Radek's hand. 'Looks like Dr Zelenka bruised his knuckles a bit.'  
"Understood. We'll be there shortly." Carson acknowledged, a faint hint of amusement reaching Shane's ears.

Glancing at his watch, Shane sighed softly as he settled in for a long wait. Normally he would have called on Rufus to come take care of Radek but he was out of contact until lunchtime at the earliest. The IOA delegation had arrived on the Daedalus the day before and was now locked away in the briefing room with the two Bounty Hunters, determining their suitability for permanent positions on Atlantis. For now, Shane would have to pay close attention and be ready if anything else went wrong.  
'Want me to see if Rufus is finished with the IOA?' he asked, keeping his hands in clear sight so he didn't accidentally scare Zelenka again.  
'Ne, he needs to focus on convincing the IOA.' Radek replied, hanging his head. 'I will be fine.'  
'Okay. Just let me know if you change your mind.' Shane nodded.

Relaxing a little more when the medical team entered the room, Shane skipped out of the way and smiled as Carson approached Radek with an icepack in hand.  
'How's the hand now?' he asked, glancing at Rodney as he held out the icepack. 'I doubt he'll forget tha' lesson in a hurry.'  
'This is Rodney we talk about.' Radek shrugged, pressing the icepack to his knuckles. 'Still aches but is minor problem.'  
'Aye, Rodney can be a bit slow to realise things.' Carson agreed, adjusting his sling quickly.  
'How is your arm?' Radek asked, looking up again.  
'Oh, its no' too bad. More of an annoyance than any real pain.' Carson shrugged, fingers tracing over the cast now liberally decorated with messages of support from almost everyone. 'Just means I can nae manage any typing.'  
'Well perhaps you can work together. It's pretty clear that everyone else who saw what happened is unsettled and concerned for your mental state. The smart idea would be to get out of the lab for a while. Considering Dr Beckett needs help typing, perhaps you could spend some time helping him with his reports.' Shane suggested; keeping one eye on the rest of the scientists as the medical team whisked McKay away.  
'Aye that would be beneficial fer me, Shane.' Carson nodded, gaze flicking to Radek.  
'Ano, perhaps a break would be good.' Radek agreed, getting to his feet. 'Perhaps some fresh coffee as well.'  
'Sounds like a fine idea.' Carson chuckled, grabbing Radek's tablet and heading for the door. 'Are ye coming Shane?'  
'Nah, I've got some other duties to attend to. You two go on ahead, I'm sure you'll be safe from here to the infirmary. I'll send Buck by later to check in.' Shane chuckled, waving the pair away. 'Try to stay out of trouble and that includes punching people in the face.'  
'We'll behave.' Carson promised, ushering Radek out of the lab.  
'Mostly.' Radek added, throwing Shane a wink.  
'Scientists.' Shane muttered, shaking his head slowly before leaving the lab.

~^~^~^~^~

Taking a deep breath and reaching deep for his boardroom calm, Aloysius glanced at Rufus and nodded faintly. They'd talked about his company and Rufus always encouraged him to stay in touch with his selected leaders within the company. Now he was going to try and put his CEO skills to use against these boardroom bastards. Squaring his shoulders and straightening his glasses, he folded his hands calmly and leant forward in his chair.  
'Mr Woolsey, we are both men of business. All this unpleasantness is really unnecessary, this is merely another business proposal that needs to be sorted out and written into a contract. Dragging up all these past situations only shows that you lack either the confidence or the authority to make this deal.' Aloysius noted, completely focused on Woolsey. 'Mind if I borrow your laptop, Rufus?'  
'Go right ahead.' Rufus nodded, sliding the laptop over and watching out the corner of his eye as Aloysius opened a fresh word document.

Leaning back in his chair, Rufus watched and listened as Aloysius took complete control of the conversation, keeping the topic far away from their past missions and calculating the best deal for them that would also allow the IOA to save face and a keep portion of the funds set aside for them. As he spoke, he was busily typing up a different contract that gave them a better deal without ripping off the IOA or going above the original payment figure. It always amused him that Aloysius could talk business and write a completely different contract at the same time.

Continuing to distract Mr Woolsey and the other IOA delegates with his negotiations and deal making, Aloysius came up with a contract that would ensure their positions in Atlantis. He didn't just think about their ongoing pay checks; he planned out every little detail in clauses and subclauses. He even wrote in a piece allowing them six trips home a year, three each to be taken whenever they felt the need.

Glancing at the screen occasionally so he could keep up with what was being written; Rufus kept most of his attention on the spoken deal. He wasn't as skilled with the split focus thing; he could do it in a combat scenario but he wasn't built for the boardroom. Negotiations were no big deal; he would sometimes add his two cents worth during normal business discussions. This was a lot more formal than their usual discussions though.  
'You're very quiet, Mr McKenzie.' the woman beside Woolsey commented.  
'I'm happy for Aloysius to negotiate on my behalf, Ma'am. I've trusted him with things a lot more dangerous than this.' Rufus shrugged, leaning back in his chair. 'I know he would never screw me on a deal.'

~^~^~^~^~

Sighing softly, Mother stared out across the water as she let her mind drift free again. It was nice out here, peaceful and quiet despite the hubbub in the mess hall just beyond the doors. She hadn't had much time to just think ever since arriving on Atlantis; she'd been busy running drills, helping Aloysius and protecting the civilians as things settled down again. Now that she had the time, her mind automatically went back to Earth and the love of her life. Memories swirled around her, taking her back through a happy life with her Ralphy and all that they had shared.

Hanging her head, she let the memories come unbidden, surrounding her with joy and wonderful moments from the last twenty-five years. It was so easy to remember the good times, to let the hours pass by as she remembered everything from their wedding day until the last time she'd laid eyes on her nuggetty little husband. She missed him so much, every day was so cold and dark without the knowledge that he would be there when she got home at the end of the shift.

Scrubbing one hand over her face, she let out a shuddering breath as the next memory rolled over her. A wide corner, clear vision from both sides. Grass torn up and thrown across the roadway, a tree snapped in half through the wreckage. A twisted, mangled wreck; cab barely recognisable from trailer. Groceries thrown in every direction, an ugly rainbow of loss and waste. A scorched wallet tossed clear of the destruction, flipped open to reveal the license inside. Personal effects thrown in every direction; crumpled and warped into parodies of what had been.

Shoulders drooping as a choked sob slipped out, she remembered having to identify the body recovered, fighting for composure as she asked to see different spots so she could examine the tattoos. Those were the only identification left; the crash had destroyed his rugged face and obliterated many of his other marks. Only the eagle and bulldog on his back remained; a permanent reminder of the two loves of his life.

Head snapping up as someone touched her arm lightly; she could only stare as Katie Brown tucked in against her side and shuddered. Glancing towards the door, Mother shifted her arm to wrap around Katie's back and held her close.  
'Everything okay?' she asked, scrubbing at her cheeks quickly.  
'I don't know.' Katie admitted, looking up at her. 'Why are you crying, Gena?'  
'Just remembering my husband.' Mother sighed, staring out at the ocean again. 'He was killed in an accident. Been eleven months now and it still hurts.'  
'I'm sorry.' Katie offered, relaxing a little as she stood there. 'Do you want to talk about him?'  
'Actually, yeah. It helps to talk, but I'm not much good with words.' Mother nodded, relaxing her grip on the railing.  
'It's okay, take your time.' Katie smiled, nudging Gena towards a bench against the wall. 'Sit down; I'll get us some coffee.'  
'Sounds good.' Mother agreed, sinking down and propping her feet up on the nearest empty plant pot. 'I appreciate this.'  
'It's the least I can do.' Katie nodded, shooting her another sweet smile before heading back inside.

Watching the clouds drift overhead, Mother smiled faintly as the memories continued to sweep over her. At least the distraction from Katie had helped her fast forward past some memories that she still wasn't ready to face. Her mind went back to the first day after the funeral, when she'd been forced to face the reality of life on her own and deal with the fact there would be an investigation and a court case. Those first few days had been so tough; she kept expecting the door to swing open and the house to explode into life with Ralph's booming laugh.

There was no justice for Ralph, no picket lines protesting on his behalf or new laws in his name to stop this happening again. Just a scared kid, barely old enough to drive and still pretty banged up from the crash. He just sat there and wept, apologising over and over again for what he'd done. She remembered the shock in his eyes when he saw her take the stand, her dress uniform perfectly pressed and medals gleaming on her chest as she spoke of her beloved husband and all that had been destroyed by one foolish young man with a big problem.

At least the judge was fair, sentencing the young man to a lengthy prison term and mandatory drug rehab. It wouldn't bring Ralph back but it did send a stern warning that youths driving under the effects of drugs wouldn't be tolerated. She tried not to think about the compensation payment she'd received for Ralph's death. Most of that she donated to a truck driver's memorial, the rest she used to immortalise part of Ralph's mangled Mack to mount on the wall of their home.

Shaken out of her thoughts when Katie returned, Mother accepted the mug she was offered and settled back, a fond smile on her lips as Katie half curled in against her side. A good memory flashed past her eyes, a moment when Libby had done much the same thing after the toughest days, needing companionship and support to get through the trouble ahead of her. It still stung a little to think of Libby too but the pain was greatly lessened by time.

Sipping her coffee, Mother let her mind drift again, up to her quarters and the two priceless reminders of her Ralphy. On the wall, still scratched and dented from the crash hung the driver's side door panel, the bannered heart still legible after everything. Around her bed, carefully curved and secured to almost embrace the head of the bed, the old bull bar had been lightened a little and now served as a permanent reminder of his love despite the distance between them.

Letting out a shaky breath, Mother gently tucked Katie in closer and closed her eyes for a moment. It felt nice to be able to relax and open up to someone in a completely different circle, allowing her to open up and talk in ways no one else understood.  
'Ralph was someone truly special. We were married for twenty-five years; never had a chance to start a family but that didn't matter to us. We never felt like we needed kids, our lives were full with work and each other. There were times that we wouldn't see each other for days on end, his work as a truck driver took him all across the country. There were times that my duty as a Marine took me away too, but I always knew that he would be waiting for me when I came home.' she started, relaxing a little more as the burden started to lift from her shoulders.

~^~^~^~^~

Relishing the burn in his shoulders, Buck spun his bantos rods slowly as he circled on the mats. He thoroughly enjoyed the time spent sparring with Teyla and Ronon, they both taught him so much more than he'd ever expected. Not just about the Pegasus Galaxy and the Wraith but about daily life on many different worlds and all the wonders he had yet to see. He could listen to their stories for hours, learning about the Athosian people and sharing the burden of remembering the Satedans. It had taken a fair bit of prodding to get Ronon to open up but he finally won the other man's trust and was introduced to a stunning new world.

He truly loved the Athosian stick fighting though, the sheer physicality of it spoke to him in ways that standard Marine training couldn't match. Clashing with Teyla was always an experience that left a mark or two on his skin, vivid bruises that always encouraged him to try harder. Sometimes he was lucky enough to leave a mark on Teyla's skin in return, a firm reminder not to misjudge him because he was still learning the art.

Today he was facing the bigger challenge, watching Ronon's every move and looking for his next opportunity to strike. Sparring with Ronon was a totally different experience, one that left him exhausted and sore from more than just the bruises. He needed to be smart and strong, deciding when to block a strike and when it was better to parry and flow around Ronon's much stronger frame to try for a gap in his defences.

Picking his moment, he twisted to the right and snapped his left stick around and down as he thrust his right hand weapon up and blocked Ronon's left hand. Flicking his left wrist, he landed a stinging blow to Ronon's side, right above his belt. Shifting his weight again, he broke their lock and ducked back, narrowly avoiding the stick aimed at his head. He wasn't quite so fortunate with the right stick, grunting as it slammed into his ribs with incredible force.  
'Ronon!' Teyla barked; stepping in to catch Ronon's next strike as Buck stumbled back a step.  
'I'm okay.' Buck groaned, straightening slowly and rubbing at his ribs. 'I should have expected that.'  
'You're getting better.' Ronon nodded, relaxing his stance and lowering his sticks. 'Not many can get me in the sparring ring.'  
'I learn fast.' Buck grinned, definitely stunned by the praise offered. 'Helps when you're working with Captain Schofield.'  
'John explained why people sometimes address him as Scarecrow.' Teyla smiled, peering at the bruise already forming on Buck's side. 'I still do not fully all these callsigns.'  
'It's a security thing, I guess. Rather than use names and reveal identities on the radio, we use callsigns to identify each other. Sometimes those callsigns are given to us by friends, others get them from superior officers and a lucky few of us inherit our callsign from other members of our family.' Buck explained, toying with his dogtags for a moment. 'I inherited my callsign from my father who was unfortunately killed in action.'  
'So that's why the two.' Ronon nodded, a new understanding dawning in his eyes.  
'Yeah, he was the original Book; he got the callsign because he was working on writing a novel before he died. When I joined the Corps, it was almost instant that I was Book II. I still have the original story he wrote, unfinished after ten years.' Buck continued, hanging his head for a moment. 'That's also why I got the tattoo on my back. An open book, a story unfinished. My father died first, so I had him placed on the left hand page. My mother passed a few weeks later and I had her recorded on the opposite page.'

Heading over to collect his bag, Buck barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the behaviour from Schofield. Seriously, he was practically ogling Teyla as he set his bag down and started stretching. Shaking his head slowly, Buck reached out and slammed Shane up the back of the head as he shouldered his bag.  
'You have serious problems, Scarecrow.' he remarked, wiping the sweat from his face. 'At least try to be subtle before she really kicks your ass.'  
'I'm tired of being subtle around women.' Shane shrugged, slipping his glasses off and tossing them down with his shirt.  
'Just be careful.' Buck sighed, turning for the door. 'Anything else I should know?'  
'Yeah, I told Drs Beckett and Zelenka that you'd swing by and check in on them. There was an incident in the lab, Dr McKay forgot the warning about giving Dr Zelenka some space and grabbed his shoulder. Zelenka panicked and smacked McKay in the face. Knocked him out cold. Zelenka thought it wise to retreat from the labs until everyone calmed down so he went down to the infirmary to help Beckett with reports.' Shane briefed, continuing to stretch as he spoke.  
'Is Rodney alright?' Teyla asked, approaching the pair for more news.  
'Yeah, he's fine. Broken nose and two black eyes, it could have been a lot worse.' Shane nodded, turning to Teyla with a grin. 'He'll look and sound funny for a little while but he'll recover. I'm not so sure about his dignity though.'  
'With everything else he's endured, I'm not sure dignity has anything to do with it.' Buck remarked, pausing in the doorway. 'Your choice Ronon. One way or the other, you're due a medical check.'  
'Fine.' Ronon groused, grabbing his gear and following Buck out of the room.

Walking towards the infirmary, Ronon considered all the questions he still had and whether or not Buck could answer at least some of them. He wasn't sure what to make of Gunnery Sergeant Newman, she wasn't exactly what he would consider a maternal figure but everyone seemed happy to call her Mother. Truth be told, he was a little intimidated by her sheer size and strength. He'd seen her in the sparring room a few times and she mowed through the Marines with devastating accuracy and force.  
'Something on your mind?' Buck asked, yanking him out of his thoughts again.  
'Why do you call her Mother?' Ronon asked, internally wincing at the stupidity of his question.  
'It's short for motherfucker. I guess the best way to explain it would be to consider her one of the meanest, deadliest and dangerous warriors on earth. She's had that aggressive callsign for as long as I've known her. On earth, it's considered a sign of just how dangerous you are if people start calling you a mean motherfucker.' Buck offered, not sure his explanation made sense but he didn't know how else to explain Mother.  
'So why not just call her motherfucker all the time?' Ronon questioned, one eyebrow lifting.  
'Now that's more about protecting sensitive ears. We spent time around kids or other innocents and it's considered really bad manners to swear around kids. So it just got shortened to Mother.' Buck shrugged, definitely surprised by these questions.  
'I don't think I've ever heard anyone call her anything but Mother.' Ronon remarked, glancing at Buck with a faint grin.  
'Her name is Gena but I'm not sure anyone calls her that. Her husband did but he died almost a year ago. She's still trying to recover from that loss so she's not up to her usual destructive level. We're not supposed to talk about it; I don't think she wants it to be public knowledge here.' Buck admitted, rubbing lightly at his ribs. 'Let's just keep that quiet.'  
'I'm good at keeping secrets.' Ronon nodded, reaching up to touch one of the trinkets in his hair. 'I understand that sort of loss. My wife was killed by the Wraith. Not culled, they had little interest in feeding the last time they came to Sateda.'  
'I'm sorry.' Buck offered, not quite sure how else to respond. 'I don't want to seem rude but were you together long?'  
'That's not rude. My squad and I would often talk about our families when we had downtime.' Ronon shrugged, looking down at Buck with a faint grin. 'We had five years together. Melena was a nurse; we were waiting for her to grade up before we started our family.'  
'Sounds like you had everything sorted out.' Buck nodded, feeling awkward and trying to hide it.  
'Mostly, there were a few minor things we still needed to sort out but it was good.' Ronon shrugged, once again toying with one of his trinkets. 'I'm guessing Gena was married longer than that.'  
'Twenty-five years. Again, let's keep that quiet.' Buck nodded, winking up at Ronon as they entered the infirmary.


End file.
